A group of paramedics had sued the parish , seeking compensation for unpaid overtime . Vitter oversaw a pair of jury trials in 2019 and 2021 , both resulting in wins for the parish . But an appeals court later ruled Vitter had erred in judgment and overturned her final order . That paved the way for the paramedics to be awarded more than $ 500,000 in compensation , plus hundreds of thousands more for their attorneys .
Throughout those proceedings , Plaquemines Parish leaders had a paid ally on their side : the judge ’ s husband , U . S . Senator-turned-lobbyist David Vitter .
But there was no way for the parties in the case to easily know this . Wendy Vitter never told the EMTs ’ attorneys . And they couldn ’ t have looked it up in any court records . While the law requires federal judges to report their spouses ’ income on annual financial disclosures , Vitter listed her husband as a “ self employed attorney ” with the name of the payroll company , TriNet HR III , that cut his checks . In fact , he is a partner and lobbyist for powerhouse Washington firm Mercury Public Affairs .
ProPublica didn ’ t uncover evidence that David Vitter ’ s business relationships played a role in his wife ’ s rulings . But the American Bar Association recommends judges disclose such relationships to let the parties decide for themselves if they are significant enough to contest . Since it ’ s not required by federal code , however , judges seldom do it , ethics experts say .
In the Plaquemines case , Wendy Vitter should have voluntarily told paramedics ’ attorneys about the potential conflict , five legal ethics experts told ProPublica . That would have allowed them to consider making motions for disqualification if she did not recuse herself .
Vitter wrote in a statement to ProPublica that she relied on guidance from the Judicial Conference Committee on Codes of Conduct that says recusal may not be necessary if a spouse ’ s client is not a direct party to the case .
Vitter said her husband was not working for the parish at the time of the trials . Public records show his contract with the parish expired in late 2018 . But federal disclosures show he continued to work into 2024 for the Plaquemines Port , a political agency that is controlled by the parish ’ s nine council members and has identical borders to Plaquemines Parish .
David Vitter did not respond to ProPublica ’ s requests for comment but told news partners at ABC News he had “ absolutely nothing to do with the lawsuit ” before his wife and that the Plaquemines Port “ is a different entity with a different governance structure than Plaquemines Parish .”
Wendy Vitter told ProPublica her husband ’ s income was “ properly disclosed ” on her financial reports , but she will start including details of his lobbying work in her disclosures moving forward .
Concerns that judges on the nation ’ s highest courts have not properly disclosed personal conflicts — and have failed to recuse when such issues
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