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David W. Robertson

DRobertson@law.utexas.edu
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Phone: (225) 929-7481
 Fax: (225) 924-4519

8201 Jefferson Highway
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70809

W. Page Keeton Chair in Tort Law
University Distinguished Teaching Professor
University of Texas School of Law

Professor David W. Robertson teaches and writes in the areas of tort law and admiralty law, and his work has been cited many times by the United States Supreme Court. He is the author of the classic textbook, Admiralty and Federalism (Foundation, 1970), and is the co-author of The Maritime Law of the United States (Carolina 2000) and Cases and Materials on Torts (West, 3d ed., 2004).

Professor Robertson's numerous articles have appeared in Louisiana Law Review, Texas Law Review, Michigan Law Review, Modern Law Review, Law Quarterly Review, Tulane Law Review and elsewhere. He is a member of the American Law Institute and serves on the Advising Board of Editors of the Journal of Maritime Law and Commerce.

Education

JSD, Yale Law School, New Haven, Connecticut,, 1968

LLM, Yale Law School, New Haven, Connecticut, 1965

LLB, Louisiana State University Law Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 1961
Honors: American Jurisprudence Awards Honors: Order of the Coif Honors: Admiralty Prize, Louisiana State University Law School Honors: Edwin J. Mahoney Criminal Law Award Honors: Best Casenote Award Honors: Best Comment Award Honors: First Place, Interfraternity Moot Court Competition Law Review: Louisiana Law Review, Associate Editor, 1959-1960 and Managing Editor, 1960-1961

BA, Louisiana State University, 1960

Jurisdictions Admitted to Practice

Louisiana, 1961
Texas, 1977
U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas, 1978
U.S. District Court Western District of Louisiana, 1980
U.S. District Court Eastern District of Louisiana, 1980
U.S. District Court Middle District of Louisiana, 1980
U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1983
U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit, 1980
U.S. Supreme Court, 1978

Bar Association

Louisiana, 1961

Texas, 1977

U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas, 1978

U.S. District Court Western District of Louisiana, 1980

U.S. District Court Eastern District of Louisiana, 1980

U.S. District Court Middle District of Louisiana, 1980

U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1983

U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit, 1980

U.S. Supreme Court, 1978

Published Works

  • Co-Author, Cases and Materials on Torts, 2nd ed. (1st ed. 1989), West, 1998
  • Co-Author, Admiralty Cases and Materials, 1997; 1996; 1995; 1994; 1992; 1992; 1977 & 1976
  • The Louisiana Law of Comparative Fault: A Decade of Progress, LSU Center Press, 1991
  • Co-Author, The Correspondence Between Leon Green and Charles McCormick: 1927-1962, Fred B. Rothman, 1988
  • Co-Author, Torts: Texas Cases and Materials, 1985
  • Admiralty and Federalism: History and Analysis of Problems of Federal-State Relations in the Maritime Law of the United States, Foundation Press, 1970
  • Eschewing Ersatz Percentages: A Simplified Vocabulary of Comparative Fault, 45 Saint Louis University Law Journal 831, 2001
  • Personal Injury and Wrongful Death (The Future of Maritime Law in the Federal Courts: A Faculty Colloquium, 31 Journal of Maritime Law & Commerce 293, 2000
  • Co-Author, The Right to a Jury Trial in Jones Act Cases: Choosing the Forum Versus Choosing the Procedure, 30 Journal of Maritime Law & Commerce 649
  • Love and Fury: Recent Radical Revisions to the Law of Comparative Fault, 59 Louisiana Law Review 175, 1998
  • Summertime Sailing and the U.S. Supreme Court: The Need for a National Admiralty Court, 29 Journal of Maritime Law & Commerce 275, 1998
  • Allocating Authority Among Institutional Decision Makers in Louisiana State-Court Negligence and Strict Liability Cases, 57 Louisiana Law Review 1079, 1997
  • The Common Sense of Cause in Fact, 75 Texas Law Review 1765, 1997
  • Punitive Damages in American Maritime Law, 28 Journal of Maritime Law & Commerce 73, 1997
  • Summary Judgment and Burden of Proof: Effects of the 1996 Amendment, 45 Louisiana Bar Journal 331, 1997
  • The Vocabulary of Negligence Law: Continuing Causation Confusion, 58 Louisiana Law Review 1, 1997

Honors and Awards

  • James R. Dougherty Chair for Faculty Excellence, University of Texas, 1976 - 1977

Past Employment Positions

  • Louisiana State University, Assistant Professor, 1962 - 1964
  • Louisiana State University, Visiting Professor of Law and Bailey Lecturer in Residence, 1974 - 1975
  • Baker & Botts Professor of Law, 1977 - 1979

Fraternities/Sororities

  • Omicron Delta Kappa
  • Phi Kappa Phi