First City Court Judge Monique Morial will complete her one-year tenure as the Sugar Bowl Committee’s president on Feb. 6. Morial, a New Orleans native who has been a member of the Sugar Bowl Committee since 1999, became the first female president of the organization.
As the 62nd president of the organization, Morial oversaw the 86th annual playing of the Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic as Georgia defeated Baylor on Jan. 1, as well as the Bowl’s annual slate of over 50 other events throughout the year. Morial also served as the chair of the New Orleans College Football Championship Host Committee as the Sugar Bowl spearheaded the city’s hosting of the 2020 College Football Playoff National Championship which saw LSU roll to victory over Clemson on Jan. 13.
In addition to the two high-profile football games, the Allstate Sugar Bowl continued its prominent position in the community by hosting and sponsoring over 50 amateur sporting events in 2019. Included in those events are every Louisiana High School Athletic Association state championship; the Crescent City Classic, a nationally-recognized road race featuring over 20,000 participants; the Manning Award, which honors college football’s top quarterback; three basketball tournaments; two volleyball tournaments; two soccer sponsorships; and events in baseball, bowling, cross country, golf, lacrosse, sailing, tennis and track and field.
The Sugar Bowl Committee was founded as the New Orleans Mid-Winter Sports Association in 1934 for the purpose of promoting amateur sporting events that would stimulate tourism and have a positive economic effect on the New Orleans metropolitan area. Over the last decade, the Sugar Bowl has had an economic impact of over $2.5 billion for the city and state.
Since being elected to the Sugar Bowl Committee in 1999, Morial has served on a wide-range of committees, including multiple years on the Bowl’s executive committee. Additionally, Morial served as a Sugar Bowl officer for four years before being elected as president.
Morial was elected to the First City Court of New Orleans in July 2010. In August of 2010, the Louisiana Supreme Court appointed her to serve Pro Tempore in the First City Court until December, replacing a retiring judge. She began her official term in January of 2011 and was re-elected without opposition for an additional six-year term in 2016.
She began her legal career clerking for judges on both the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal and the Civil District Court. After working for local firms, she started the Law Office of Monique G. Morial in 2003 where she maintained an active practice in civil litigation. In 2007, Judge Morial joined a local law firm practicing in the area of law enforcement defense and general litigation. From 1998-2010, she served as the attorney for the First City Court Clerk’s Office.
Born and raised in New Orleans, Judge Morial graduated from Ursuline Academy in 1988 and from Emory University in 1992. She returned to New Orleans to attend Tulane University School of Law where she received her Juris Doctorate in 1995. She is a member of the Louisiana State Bar Association, the New Orleans Bar Association and the National Bar Association.
In addition to her volunteer role with the Allstate Sugar Bowl, Morial has served as president for the Ursuline Academy Alumnae Association and has served many years on the alumnae board. She was formerly on the boards of CASA New Orleans and the Urban League of Greater New Orleans. She has served as secretary and vice-chair of the Young Lawyers Section of the New Orleans Bar Association.