DAVID BUTTERFIELD.VCF

Mr. David F. Butterfield was born on August 6, 1958, in East Lansing, Michigan.  He was raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and went to high school in Fort Collins, Colorado.  He has lived in Louisiana since 1976.

Mr. Butterfield graduated in 1980 from Louisiana State University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science.  As an undergraduate at Louisiana State University he was on the Dean's list for eight consecutive semesters and became a member of the Phi Eta Sigma Honorary Scholastic Fraternity.  He obtained a Juris Doctorate Degree in 1983 from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center, Louisiana State University.  He is a member of the LSU Alumni Association and a member of the LSU Law School Alumni Association.  

Following graduation from law school, Mr. Butterfield was admitted to practice law in the State of Louisiana in 1984 and became a member of the Central Staff for Louisiana's Second Circuit Court of Appeal.  He became associated with the law firm of Mayer, Smith & Roberts, L.L.P. in August of 1985.  He became a junior partner with the firm on January 1, 1991, and is now a senior partner.

Mr. Butterfield is a member of the American Bar Association, the Louisiana State Bar Association, and the Shreveport Bar Association.  He served as a Director of the Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel from 2005-2007.  He is a member of the American Association for Justice.  He is a Notary Public for the State of Louisiana.

Mr. Butterfield is licensed to practice before all Louisiana Courts, the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court.  He has served on the Federal Indigent Defender Board for the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.  He has tried over 20 civil jury trials to verdict.

Mr. Butterfield practices as an insurance defense litigator primarily in the areas of complicated tort claims, coverage defense, products liability, automobile accident claims, civil rights claims, and professional liability defense, including defense of physicians, accountants, and lawyers.  He has also handled the defense of numerous environmental claims, including asbestos claims, claims for leaking underground storage tanks, and claims for environmental remediation at abandoned waste dumps.  Although his practice emphasizes insurance defense, he also handles criminal cases, successions, business development, business transactions, bankruptcy cases for creditors, commercial litigation, plaintiff personal injury cases, and domestic suits.  He has tried cases in Shreveport, Baton Rouge, Alexandria, and Monroe, Louisiana.  He has also tried cases in numerous other smaller cities and towns throughout North and Central Louisiana.

Mr. Butterfield has been a volunteer for the Shreveport Pro Bono Project since its inception.  He is a volunteer for the Shreveport Volunteers for Juvenile Justice Program and has handled numerous juvenile delinquency and child in need of care matters.  He has been a speaker for the National Business Institute at a Continuing Legal Education Seminar.

Mr. Butterfield has been a fundraiser for the United Way and the Shreveport Jaycees.  He is a member of the First Presbyterian Church, Shreveport, Louisiana.  He has served First Presbyterian Church in numerous capacities, including Sunday school teacher, Moderator for the Board of Deacons, Elder, Chairperson for the Staff Committee, member of the D. Thomason Trust Committee and member of various nominating committees.  He is now serving in his fourth term as an Elder.  He strives to maintain and foster the highest standards of ethics, competency, and professionalism in the practice of law and the highest standards of service to his community.

Education:

• Louisiana State University and A&M College
  B.A., 1980
  J.D., 1983

Bar Admissions:

• Louisiana, 1984

Admitted to Practice:

• All Louisiana state courts, including Louisiana Supreme Court
• Federal courts:

   United States District Court, Western District of Louisiana

   United States District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana 

   United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

   United States Supreme Court

Professional Memberships:

• Shreveport Bar Association
• Louisiana State Bar Association
• American Bar Association
• Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel
• The Defense Research Institute
• American Association of Justice

Areas of Practice:

• Professional Liability Law
• Environmental Law
• Asbestos Claims 
• Products Liability Law
• Automobile Liability Law
• Premises Liability Law
• Debt Collection
• Creditors’ Rights
• Criminal Defense
• Civil Rights Law