Fishman Haygood, L.L.P.
Black and white headshot of Tad Bartlett

Tad Bartlett

Partner

Partner

Phone Icon 504.556.5519

Fax Icon 504.949.8116

vCard

Download PDF

Practice Focus

Appellate Group Class Actions/Mass Actions/MDLs Environmental

About

H.S. Bartlett III (“Tad”), who leads the firm’s Appellate Practice, focuses on appellate advocacy and brings deep experience across state and federal courts nationwide. An Appellate Practice Specialist certified by the Louisiana Board of Legal Specialization, he serves as a member of the LBLS Appellate Practice Advisory Commission.

“Tad is a recognized appellate specialist. His vast appellate experience includes expertly handling environmental and construction-related appeals.” —Chambers and Partners

Tad has built a nationally recognized appellate practice, representing clients in all Louisiana state courts, multiple federal circuit courts of appeal—including the Second, Fifth, Seventh, and Ninth Circuits—and in certiorari proceedings before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Experience

  • Morgan City Land and Fur Co. v. Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., L.L.C., 325 So. 3d 1051 (La. 10/12/2021), affirming in part Morgan City Land and Fur Co. v. Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., L.L.C., 319 So. 3d 437 (La. App. 4 Cir. 4/21/2021): Successfully reversing district court summary judgment that pipeline companies did not have a duty to maintain canal widths.
  • Vintage Assets, Inc. v. Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., L.L.C., 20-0065, 20-0066 (La. App. 4 Cir. 3/19/2020) (unpub.): On competing writ applications, successfully had trial court summary judgment affirmed in part that held that pipeline companies had a duty to maintain canal widths where servitude agreements required pipeline canals not exceed a certain width, and successfully had trial court summary judgment ruling reversed in part on holding that this duty to maintain canal widths also applied to servitude agreements that did not state a specific canal width.
  • LeMon v. National Football League, 277 So. 3d 1166 (La. 2019): Successfully petitioned Louisiana Supreme Court for expedited writs to reverse appellate court and trial court and dismiss unfair trade practice, fraud, and conspiracy claims brought by ticket holders against major sports league and other defendants arising from officiating actions and policies.
  • Red Barn Motors, Inc. v. NextGear Capital, Inc., 915 F.3d 1098 (7th Cir. 2019): Successfully brought 23(f) appeal on behalf of plaintiff to vacate district court’s decertification of class of used car dealerships asserting breach of contract claims against automotive financing company.
  • Louisiana Oil and Gas Ass’n, Inc. v. Caldwell, 2016 WL 687144 (La. App. 1 Cir. 2/18/2016): Successfully defended appeal of judgment granting regional flood protection authority’s requested declaratory relief regarding its authority to retain outside counsel to represent it in claims arising from coastal land-loss issues.

Professional Activities & Community Involvement

Recognitions

Media

  • Author, Take the Fifth Blog, https://takethefifth.blog/.
  • Author, “A Year of Transition at the Agenda-Setting 5th Circuit,” Law360.com, Dec. 20, 2023.
  • Author, Cases & Materials, 30 No. 1 PIABA B. J. 105 (2023).
  • Author, “Professionalism Through Creativity: A Fully Integrated Look at What it Means to Be an Attorney,” Briefly Speaking, June 2019.
  • Author, “Judge Clark Concludes Act 544 is Unconstitutional,” Louisiana Bar Journal, Feb./March 2015.
  • Co-author, “Not Dead Yet: The Imposition of Arbitration Awards Against Non-Party Sureties,” Surety Claims Institute Newsletter, Jan. 2007.
  • Author, “Recent Developments: Court to Decide Crucial Coastal Restoration Issues,” Louisiana Bar Journal, Aug. 2004.
  • Co-author, “Leaving Communities Behind: The Evolving World of Environmental Justice,” Louisiana Bar Journal, Aug. 2003.
  • Author, “Latest Chapter in Shintech Story: Addis Site Selection Survives IT Analysis,” 7.3 Louisiana Environmental Lawyer 15, 2002.
  • Author, “The Small Business Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act: New Hope for New Orleans Brownfields?,” Briefly Speaking, 2002.
  • Author, “Plan Ahead for Disaster Recovery,” Briefly Speaking, 2001.
  • Author, “Determining Whether a Title VII Plaintiff Class’s ‘Aim is True’: The Legacy of Allison v. Citgo Petroleum Corp. for Employment Discrimination Class Certification Under FRCP 23(b)(2),” 74 Tulane Law Review 2163, 2000.
  • Author, “Is NEPA Substantive Review Extinct, or Merely Hibernating? Resurrecting NEPA Section 102(1),” 13 Tulane Environmental Law Journal 411, 2000.
  • Author, “‘The Swamp’s a Hell of a Place to Die, Ain’t It?’: How Objective Reasonableness Has Stagnated the Flow of Fourth Amendment Deadly Force Law at Its Juncture with the Qualified Immunity Defense,” 74 Tulane Law Review 301, 1999.
  • Panelist, “Step by Step: U.S. Fifth Circuit Updates,” New Orleans Bar Association Bench Bar Conference, March 28, 2026.
  • Speaker, “Appellate Law: A 2024 Year-in-Review of the State of the U.S. Fifth Circuit,” New Orleans Bar Association Procrastinators’ Programssm CLE, Dec. 27, 2024.
  • Panelist, “Winning on Paper: Motion and Brief Writing Tips,” Masters of the Courtroom CLE, Dec. 12, 2024.
  • Panelist, “Appeals: Winning Your Appeal at Trial,” Masters of the Courtroom CLE, Dec. 14, 2023.
  • Panelist, “Public Trust Doctrine: An Evolving Legal Theory for an Evolving Coastline,” State of the Coast Conference, June 2, 2023.
  • Moderator, “Legal Ramifications Surrounding the Latest Scientific Evidence in Pipeline Canals and Land Loss,” State of the Coast Conference, May 31, 2023.

Credentials

  • J.D., magna cum laude, from Tulane Law School, 2000
    • Managing Editor of the Tulane Law Review
    • Order of the Coif
  • M.F.A. from University of New Orleans, 2015
  • B.A., magna cum laude, from Spring Hill College, 1994
  • The Honorable James L. Dennis of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, 2000-2001
  • Louisiana
  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • U.S. District Courts for the Eastern, Middle, and Western Districts of Louisiana
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit

Notable Rankings

Tad Bartlett 2025 Chambers Badge2026 Benchmark Litigation Litigation Star sealTad Bartlett Best Lawyers 2026 BadgeSuper Lawyers 2026 badge