The Honorable Ivan Lemelle
U.S. District Court Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle was born on June 29, 1950, in Opelousas, Louisiana. In 1971, Lemelle graduated cum laude from Xavier University with a B.S. degree. Lemelle received many scholarships in order to attend Loyola University College of Law in New Orleans, where he graduated in 1974 with a J.D. degree. After graduation, he served for three years as an Assistant District Attorney in New Orleans, where he was promoted to supervisory positions within that office, including co-chief of narcotic prosecutions.
In 1977, Lemelle worked as a private practitioner with the law firm of Douglas, Nabonne & Wilkerson, the largest African American law firm in Louisiana at that time. He also served part-time as Assistant City Attorney for the City of New Orleans. From 1980 to October 2, 1984, Lemelle was the Assistant Attorney General for the Louisiana Department of Justice. From October 3, 1984 to 1998, he was a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. His appointment to that office made him the first African American United States Magistrate Judge in Louisiana federal courts and the sixth African American U. S. Magistrate Judge in the Nation. In 1998, President Bill Clinton appointed Lemelle to the position of United States District Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana in New Orleans, where he currently serves as the only African American District Judge for that Court.
In addition to service in leadership positions with numerous civic, fraternal and professional organizations, Judge Lemelle has also served on the Federal Judicial Center’s Advisory Committee for the Guide to Judicial Management of Cases in Alternate Dispute Resolution, President of the Loyola College of Law-Thomas More Inn of Court, Visiting Committee Board for Loyola College of Law, Amistad Research Center’s Executive Board, Federal Bar Association New Orleans Chapter Board of Directors, District Judges Association for the U. S. Fifth Circuit Executive Committee, and the Board of Reconcile New Orleans, Inc.-a nonprofit committed to addressing the system of generational poverty, violence and neglect in the New Orleans area.
Judge Ivan Lemelle was interviewed by The HistoryMakers on June 8, 2010.
A2010.054
Male
6/8/2010
LeMelle
Married
North Elementary School
St. Augustine Seminary
Xavier University of Louisiana
Opelousas Catholic School
Loyola University New Orleans College of Law
Ivan
Opelousas
LEM02
Spring, Summer
Louisiana
Swimming
The Reward For Doing Good Work Is To Do Better Work.

Louisiana
6/29/1950
New Orleans
USA
Seafood
Federal district court judge The Honorable Ivan Lemelle (1950 - ) served as the U.S. Magistrate to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana for over a decade, and in 1998, he was appointed by President Bill Clinton to serve as a U.S. District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
New Orleans Legal Assistance Corp.
United States Department of Defense
Xavier University
Loyola University City College Div.
Loyola University College of Law
United States District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana
District Attorney's Office
Law Firm of Douglas, Nabonne, & Wilkerson
City Attorney Office
Louisiana Department of Justice
Black, Yellow
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619410">Tape: 1 Slating of The Honorable Ivan Lemelle's interview</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619411">Tape: 1 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle lists his favorites</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619412">Tape: 1 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls his mother's upbringing and education</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619413">Tape: 1 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his mother's family background</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619414">Tape: 1 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his father's family background</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619415">Tape: 1 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers his paternal grandparents</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619416">Tape: 1 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls his father's personality and career</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619417">Tape: 1 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his earliest childhood memories</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619418">Tape: 1 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls his family's move to Opelousas, Louisiana</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619419">Tape: 1 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his community in Opelousas, Louisiana, pt. 1</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619420">Tape: 1 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his community in Opelousas, Louisiana, pt. 2</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619421">Tape: 2 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls his elementary schools in Opelousas, Louisiana</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619422">Tape: 2 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his early religious experiences</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619423">Tape: 2 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers his schools' limited resources</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619424">Tape: 2 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his childhood activities</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619425">Tape: 2 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers his early career and educational aspirations</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619426">Tape: 2 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls his parents' civil rights efforts</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619427">Tape: 2 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his experiences of racial discrimination in Louisiana</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619428">Tape: 2 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls the assassinations of the 1960s</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619429">Tape: 2 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his teenage social activities</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619430">Tape: 2 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers his high school prom and graduation</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619431">Tape: 3 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his father's value of educational achievement</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619432">Tape: 3 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls his housing at Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619433">Tape: 3 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about Gert Town in New Orleans, Louisiana</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619434">Tape: 3 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls his activities at Xavier University of Louisiana</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619435">Tape: 3 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about his experiences with the Student Government Association</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619436">Tape: 3 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers pledging Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619437">Tape: 3 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his decision to attend law school</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619438">Tape: 3 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle reflects upon his experiences at Loyola University New Orleans College of Law</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619439">Tape: 3 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls the political climate of Xavier University of Louisiana</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619440">Tape: 4 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers his start at Loyola University New Orleans College of Law</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619441">Tape: 4 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his experiences at Loyola University New Orleans College of Law</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619442">Tape: 4 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers his law school professors</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619443">Tape: 4 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls his experiences at the New Orleans Legal Assistance Corporation</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619444">Tape: 4 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his internship for the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's Corps at Fort Sam Houston</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619445">Tape: 4 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls his experience as a student law practitioner in Louisiana</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619446">Tape: 4 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about his personal growth</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619447">Tape: 4 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers passing the bar examination</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619448">Tape: 4 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls proposing to his wife</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619449">Tape: 5 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about his wife and children</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619450">Tape: 5 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers clerking for Judge Robert Collins</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619451">Tape: 5 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his early career as an attorney</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619452">Tape: 5 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about the roles of a magistrate judge and city attorney</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619453">Tape: 5 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls his decision to apply for a magistrate judgeship</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619454">Tape: 5 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle reflects upon his experiences of sentencing</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619455">Tape: 5 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls being recommended for a federal district judgeship</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619456">Tape: 5 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes the federal judicial appointment process</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619457">Tape: 6 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers his Senate judicial confirmation hearing</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619458">Tape: 6 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about his chambers at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619459">Tape: 6 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle recalls delivering his first life sentence</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619460">Tape: 6 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his preference for federal civil cases</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619461">Tape: 6 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about the U.S. courts of appeals</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619462">Tape: 6 The Honorable Ivan LemElle recalls a housing discrimination case</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619463">Tape: 6 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about his cases relevant to Hurricane Katrina</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619464">Tape: 6 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle remembers Hurricane Katrina</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619465">Tape: 6 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619466">Tape: 7 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes the Just the Beginning Foundation</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619467">Tape: 7 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about RNO, Inc.</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619468">Tape: 7 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes his involvement with the youth of New Orleans, Louisiana</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619469">Tape: 7 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about the law profession</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619470">Tape: 7 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle shares his advice to future generations</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619471">Tape: 7 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle reflects upon his career</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619472">Tape: 7 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle talks about his interest in travelling</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619473">Tape: 7 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle describes how he would like to be remembered and his hopes for youth</a>
<a href="https://da.thehistorymakers.org/story/619474">Tape: 7 The Honorable Ivan Lemelle expresses his gratitude for The HistoryMakers</a>
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