Lisa Blue Baron

Lisa Blue Baron
Born	Lisa Blue 1952 Atlanta, Georgia
Education	MA, PhD, and JD
Alma mater	University of Georgia University of Virginia University of North Texas Masters and Johnson Institute South Texas College of Law
Occupation	Lawyer, Jury Consultant, and Psychologist
Known for	President of the American Association for Justice (2014-16)
Notable work	Blue’s Guide to Jury Selection
Spouse(s)	Fred Baron (deceased)

Lisa Blue Baron is an American lawyer. Holding a doctorate in Psychology, she worked in the field until the late 1970s, when she became a jury consultant and received her law degree. She then worked as an assistant district attorney in Dallas, before joined the law firm Baron and Budd. Later she formed her own firm Baron and Blue, and was elected President of the American Association for Justice in 2014. In addition to her legal career, she has acted as a fundraiser for the Democratic Party in the United States and as a philanthropist through her Baron and Blue Foundation.

Early life and education

Lisa Blue Baron was born in 1952^[1] and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. Her father was a surgeon, and was one of four children. In 1973 she received a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Georgia.^[2] She attended the University of Virginia, where she received two masters degrees, one in counseling and one educational psychology. She then received a Ph.D. in counseling Psychology from the University of North Texas. She also trained as a sex therapist at the Masters and Johnson Institute in St. Louis, Missouri.^[1]

Career

Baron began her career as a teacher and counseling psychologist at a psychiatric hospital in Houston.^[1] She then worked as a jury consultant and forensic psychologist. Following these experiences, she enrolled in South Texas College of Law, graduating in 1980. She started her legal career as an assistant district attorney in Dallas, where she prosecuted 125 criminal trials, and eventually worked for the Organized Crime Division. In 1986 she began working with her husband at his firm Baron and Budd, where she worked until they sold their interest in the firm in 2002. Following this she continued to work in law and as a jury consultant, with her firm Baron and Blue.^[3][4]

In 2012 she was elected as vice-president of the American Association for Justice,^[1] the world’s largest trial bar, and in 2014 she moved to Washington DC to led the organization as President.^[4][5] Baron is also a fundraiser for the Democratic Party of the United States.^[1] In 2016, she became a top fundraiser for the Hillary Clinton Presidential Campaign,^[6] hosting campaign events at her Dallas home.^[7][8] In May, according to the Dallas Morning News, Baron hosted a fundraiser for Clinton, which Clinton and 350 donors attended. In October 2016, she donated $20,000 to the Hillary Victory Fund.^[9] She also fundraisers for local and state elections.^[10] At the Mass Torts Made Perfect (MTTP) biannual conference in Las Vegas in October 2016, Baron addressed the crowd in support of Hillary Clinton and other Democratic candidates. She told the attendees that her dream job would be to help Clinton, if elected president, vet candidates for federal judgeships.^[9]

Writing

Baron has written four books,^[3] co-authored with Robert Hirschhorn.^[2] Her 2004 book entitled Blue’s Guide to Jury Selection is considered to be an important contribution to the field of jury selection.^[4] In a review in The Brief, Judge Todd Seelig wrote of the book that it, “provides litigators with invaluable information by revealing [author] secrets … and sharing in detail how [the authors] prepare for and execute effective voir dire and jury selection.”^[11]

Recognition

In 2001 the National Law Journal named her one of the top fifty female litigators in the United States,^[1] and later as one of the Journal's “Top 100 Most Influential Lawyers in America”. In 2015 she was named to the US Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame.^[12]

Personal life

In 1980 she was married to attorney Fred Baron until his death from cancer in 2008, and is mother to five children.^[3] As a philanthropist, she runs the Baron and Blue Foundation and raises money for causes such as homelessness.^[2] Many of the fundraisers are held as dinner parties on her Dallas estate.^[13]

References