Vivica Smith Pierre is a general attorney offering a variety of legal services.  She is assisted by case managers, litigation paralegals, secretaries and legal assistants.  It is our belief that you, the client, should have the best legal representation. While Attorney Pierre is compassionate, she helps you to achieve success by taking action.

Ph. D., Doctoral student, in Education, Research Methods, and Leadership at LSU (Anticipated degree in spring, 2010), Louisiana State University

M.L.I.S. (Master of Library and Information Science), 2003, Louisiana State University

LL.M. (Master of Laws, Advanced Degree/Research Degree), 1992, University of Arkansas School of Law

J.D. (Juris Doctor), 1991, Southern University Law Center

B.A. (Bachelor of Arts) in Economics, 1980, Spelman College

Bar Affiliations: Admitted, Louisiana State Bar Association (since 1993); United States District Court, Admitted 2004, Western and Middle Districts of Louisiana, U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.

Community Building and Professional Activities

• Member of the Educational Law Association
• Member of the AALL (American Association of Law Libraries)

Articles and presentations by Attorney Vivica Pierre

• Integrating Information Literacy into the Legal Education Curriculum
• Information Literacy in Legal Research -- Challenges / Shortcuts to Retrieving La. Docs. & Materials
• Expert Testimony and Federal Rule of Evidence 703: California Law and Recent Cases
• Through the Windows of the European Union: International Law and the Economics of Labor and Wage Disparities
• Beyond Brown: Louisiana Lawyer Discusses the East Baton Rouge Desegregation Suit and its Relation to Brown v. Board of Education

Career Profile

You probably would find it unique that Vivica was born in Los Angeles, California to military parents (both parents are now retired).  As a result of her parents being in the military she was able to travel to many places in and outside of the United States and has met several people from diverse backgrounds and cultures.  She subsequently began her work career in Corporate America, working - from the ground level up - as a crew member with McDonald’s. 

• From 1976-1991, Vivica gained strong experience in teamwork and strategic management, sales, and risk management (Eastern Airlines, Inc., Hartford Insurance).
• From 1981 to 1986, she worked in the insurance industry, where she was a commercial property and real estate underwriter with the Hartford. Later, she expanded her knowledge of risk management and later went on to train sales agents, while working for Metropolitan Life Insurance Companies.
• In 1986, she became a Certified Property and Casualty Underwriter (CPCU).
• Admitted, 1993; From1993-2004, she transitioned into teaching before starting her law practice. Teachers are not appreciated or paid the way they should be, based on the product.
• Since 2004, Vivica has built a small law practice, with a consulting, teaching and training component. Learn to anticipate and plan for legal pitfalls, if possible, before litigation is required, she says.

• There are certain actions that we must take to move us into the future.
• Success or failure is a belief passed from generation to generation.
• Positive attitude plus action plus opportunity equals success.
• Cut relationships that are not positive.  Build relationships with positive individuals and businesses.
• Each generation passes that torch to the next. Focus on the best interest of the children.
• Within every challenge, within every crisis, lies an opportunity if you take action.
• Often, we expect change to come from the outside, and so we wait for someone to present us with the solutions or for someone else to do it for us.  That is why leadership is so often unattainable for individuals and organizations. 
• But real leadership comes from within.  It comes from realizing that the time has come to move beyond complacency ... to action.