Lynn A. Baker holds the Frederick M. Baron Chair in Law at the University of Texas in Austin. Her wide-ranging scholarly interests include mass tort litigation, “Mega-settlements,” Professional Responsibility (especially issues involving “aggregate” litigation and group settlements), attorneys’ fees, and State and Local Government Law. She is often called upon by lawyers to serve as a consultant in mass tort settlements and as an expert on issues of complex legal ethics, settlement fund allocations, and attorneys’ fees. Professor Baker has also been a court-appointed allocation Special Master in mass tort settlements. She is an elected member of the American Law Institute.
Professor Baker is the author or co-author of dozens of articles and book chapters, many of which have been cited by courts and in prominent legal treatises. Her recent publications include “The ‘Inherent Powers’ of Multidistrict Litigation Courts” (Pepperdine Law Review symposium, 2024), “MDL Myths,” (Texas Law Review, 2023) (with Andrew D. Bradt); “Anecdotes Versus Data in the Search for Truth about Multidistrict Litigation,” (Cornell Law Review Online, 2022) (with Andrew Bradt); “The Mysterious Market for Post-Settlement Litigant Finance,” (N.Y.U. Law Review Online, 2021) (with Ronen Avraham & Anthony J. Sebok); and “The MDL Revolution and Consumer Legal Funding,” (Review of Litigation, 2021) (with Ronen Avraham & Anthony J. Sebok). Professor Baker is also the co-author of a leading law school text, Local Government Law: Cases and Materials (Foundation Press, 6th ed. 2022) (with Clayton P. Gillette and David Schleicher).
A graduate of Yale Law School, Yale College, and Oxford University (Marshall Scholar), she was a Law Clerk to the Hon. Amalya L. Kearse, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (1985-86 Term). A two-time world champion in tournament bridge (2018 & 2014), Professor Baker is also a sixteen-time North American champion.