Term Ends: 2026
Party: D
Judge Nakisha Ervin-Knott was elected to Civil District Court on November 4, 2014. Prior to being elected, Judge Ervin-Knott was a partner in the law firm of Gainsburgh, Benjamin, David, and Meunier & Warshauer. In fact, she was the first African American Female Partner in the 66 year old firm. Her practice focused on medical negligence cases in addition to automobile, personal injury, and class action matters. Before joining the firm, she served as a staff counsel for LAMMICO, the largest insurer of health care providers in the state. In 1999-2000, she served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Terri F. Love, Civil District Court (CDC) for the Parish of Orleans. Beyond her legal practice, Ms. Ervin-Knott served on the Council of Directors for the Louisiana Associate for Justice, Vice Chair of ASI Federal Credit Union, and is the immediate Past President of the Independent Women’s Organization, the oldest and largest democratic women’s organization in the city. Currently, Judge Ervin-Knott serves as the chair of Civil District Court’s Information Technology Committee, on the Board of Governors of the Louisiana Judicial College and as the Treasurer of the Fourth Circuit Judges Association. She is also a member of the Louis A. Martinet Legal Society, the Association of Women Attorneys, was recognized as a 2014 “Leader in Law” by New Orleans City Business on November 4th, 2014 and was recently inducted into the Southern University Law Center’s Judicial Wall of Fame. Judge Ervin-Knott currently serves as a coordinator and presenter for new judge training for newly elected judges in the state of Louisiana.
Judge Ervin-Knott is a 1998 graduate of Southern University Law Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, J.D., and a 1995 honor graduate of Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, Louisiana, with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. She is married to Steven Knott and they are the proud parents of two boys, Devin and Dylan Knott, ages 15 and 12.