Lara K. Richards

Practice Focus

Class Actions/Mass Actions/MDLs, Governmental Securities Litigation, Lender Liability, Ponzi/Banking Schemes, Securities and Antitrust, Tax

Lara Richards, special counsel in our Litigation Section, is particularly skilled at managing and organizing complex litigation projects. From organizing the review of millions of documents in municipal finance disputes to shepherding the firm’s 200-plus cases filed after the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico to assisting in multi-day trials and arbitrations, Lara’s background as city editor for a daily newspaper fully equips her for dealing with the daily demands of her job. With a combination of efficiency, ingenuity, and Texas sass, Lara’s case management skills aid the firm in going to battle against the biggest law firms in the nation.

With her penchant for complex litigation project management, Lara also leads the Fishman Haygood Focus Group team. Customizing each focus group to meet the needs of her clients, she ably facilitates all aspects necessary to conduct an efficient and economical mock jury—from coordinating with recruiters to running the focus group day-of and providing analysis of its findings. Click here to learn more about the firm’s Focus Group capabilities.

Lara graduated with a B.A. in English and Government from the University of Notre Dame. She graduated magna cum laude from Tulane University Law School in 2011, where she was a member of the Order of the Coif and a managing editor of Tulane Law Review. During her third year of law school, she worked as an extern for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Louisiana.

She is a member of the Federal Bar Association Young Lawyers Division where she serves on the Publications/Social Media Committee. Prior to her legal career, Lara was a print journalist in Texas.

Education

J.D., magna cum laude, from Tulane University School of Law, 2011
- Managing Editor of the Tulane Law Review
- Order of the Coif
B.A. in English and Government from University of Notre Dame, 1997

Publications / Presentations

Publications

Jason Burge and Lara K. Richards, Crafting an Argument that Statues of Limitations Do Not Apply in Arbitration, 20 No. 1 PIABA B. J. 31 (2015)
Jason W. Burge & Lara K. Richards, A Compelling Case for Streamlining Venue of Actions to Enjoin Arbitration, 88 Tul. L. Rev. 773, 775 (2014)
Lara K. Richards & Jason W. Burge, Analyzing the Application of Statutes of Limitations in Arbitration, 49 Gonz. L. Rev. 214 (2014).
Jason W. Burge & Lara K. Richards, Defining “Customer”: A Survey of Who Can Demand FINRA Arbitration, 74 La. L. Rev. 173 (2013)

Presentations

“Use of Focus Groups and Mock Trials,” New Orleans Bar Association 2024 Masters of the Courtroom^smProcrastinators’ Programs^sm(December 2024)
“Testing 1-2-3: Using Focus Groups, Mock Trials, and Shadow Juries in Litigation,” Society of Louisiana Certified Public Accountants 2024 Forensic, Litigation & Valuation Services Conference (August 2024)
“Calculating Damages in Investment Loss Cases,” Society of Louisiana Certified Public Accountants 2023 Forensic, Litigation & Valuation Services Conference (October 2023)
“Surviving Depositions and Cross-Examinations,” Society of Louisiana Certified Public Accountants 2022 Forensic, Litigation & Valuation Services Conference (October 2022)

Representative Matters

Lara has handled a number of interesting matters, including representing:

Individuals and the Official Stanford Investor’s Committee against five banks, with particular concentration on claims against Trustmark National Bank and Independent Bank of Texas (formerly known as Bank of Houston), in a lawsuit alleging the banks’ aiding and abetting of the $7 billion Ponzi scheme perpetrated by R. Allen Stanford; settlements of $100 million were reached with both Trustmark and Bank of Houston in early 2023, with total recoveries from all five bank defendants (The Toronto-Dominion Bank, Société Générale Private Banking (Suisse) S.A., HSBC Bank plc, Trustmark, and Bank of Houston) amounting to more than $1.6 billion;
An elderly couple in a securities arbitration involving a private placement real estate investment, obtaining a $1.6 million award, including 100% of their losses and an award of attorney’s fees;
Multiple institutions (including Allina Health System, Baylor College of Medicine, Carilion Clinic, City of Houston, Texas, Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, and Lake Hospital System, Inc.) in claims against their bond underwriters and investment banks in connection with the issuance of auction rate securities in both federal court and FINRA arbitrations;
William Beaumont Hospital in claims arising from its issuance of auction rate securities, a case proceeding in the Eastern District of Michigan;
A Texas-based hospital system in a FINRA arbitration of claims arising from the issuance of variable rate demand obligations and related interest rate swaps; and
Hundreds of businesses, individuals, and landowners against BP relating to the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico in April 2010. Her work includes parties both inside and outside of the settlement.