Recognized as a judicial pacesetter, Piper Griffin is a Judge of the Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans, Division “I”, where she has served since her election to the bench in 2001. Judge Griffin received her Juris Doctor degree from Louisiana State University School of Law in 1987 and was admitted to practice in Louisiana in that year. While in law school, Judge Griffin was president of BLSA and a National Finalist in the Frederick Douglas Moot Court Competition. She holds a B.A. degree from the University of Notre Dame where she received the Leonard A. Collins Senior Honorary Award in recognition of her contributions to student life at the University. In 1997 she was recognized as one of the 50 most distinguished Black graduates in the history of the University.
Judge Griffin is active in many professional and civic associations including serving as chair of the Louisiana Judicial Council/National Bar Association, as well as secretary of the Louisiana Judicial Council Foundation; as Executive Board member of the Louisiana Association of District Court Judges, as President of the 4th and 5th Circuit Judges Association as well as treasurer of the District Judges Association, as a member of the Testing Committee of the Louisiana Committee of Bar Examiners, a member of the Law Institute, President of the Board of Directors for St. Katharine Drexel Prep (formerly Xavier Prep) and the Board of Trustees at the Second Baptist Church Sixth District.
Judge Griffin is a frequent community and continuing legal education speaker and has received numerous awards and certificates in recognition of her accomplishments and her commitment to the community. These include being recognized as a YWCA Role Model; being listed in “Who’s Who in American Law”; receipt of the Louis A. Martinet Legal Society 2003 Ernest N. Morial Judicial Pacesetter Award and the 2003 Alliance for Good Government Civic Award.