Lisa A. Baron

Partner

Merrillville Office
233 E. 84th Drive
Suite 301
Merrillville, IN 46410

Indianapolis Office
11590 N. Meridian St.
Suite 650
Carmel, IN 46032

Lisa A. Baron is a partner at Clark Johnson & Knight, Ltd. Lisa primarily practices in the areas of municipal defense, general liability, and underinsured and uninsured motorist cases. She has extensive experience defending municipalities and their employees in all facets of Section 1983 litigation, including false arrest, pursuit, use of force, jail conditions of confinement, jail medical care, as well as jail class action matters. In addition to defending municipalities, Lisa also takes on complex general liability cases involving serious personal injuries and wrongful death, as well as underinsured and uninsured motorist claims for clients.
Lisa has successfully defended matters throughout the state of Indiana for over a decade in both state and federal courts. She also has experience trying cases as both lead and second chair throughout her time with the firm. In addition, Lisa has negotiated numerous cases to a favorable resolution at mediation and settlement conferences for a wide variety of clients.
Lisa graduated from Iona College in 2009, where she played four years on the women’s lacrosse team. She also serves as the attorney to the Westchester Public Library Board and has served in this capacity since fall 2021.

Police liability cases, including false arrest, uses of force, and pursuits;
Jail liability cases, including in custody death, deprivation of medical care, overcrowding, conditions of confinement, uses force and failure to protect;
Municipal defense, including negligence, failure to train/supervise, personal injury and property damage claims against governmental entities;
Serious bodily injury and wrongful death;
First Amendment retaliation;
Uninsured and underinsured motorist cases;
General liability claims;

Career Highlights

Obtained a dismissal of a federal lawsuit claiming that sheriff’s deputies had deprived the decedent’s family of the right of access to the courts. The plaintiff claimed that his father had been murdered, and that the deputies had destroyed evidence of the murder. We successfully moved in the probate court to vacate the order giving the plaintiff the right to sue on behalf of his father’s estate. Owsley v. Gorbett, et al., 2022 WL 3359240 (7th Cir., Aug. 15, 2022).

Voluntarily dismissal of ACLU class action in Marshall County, Indiana based upon jail overcrowding claims. The matter was successfully resolved following collaborative efforts of County Officials, Sheriff, County Attorney, local Judges, Prosecutor’s Office, and community corrections to effectively implement offender programs, add another court, add specialty courts, use risk-based assessments (both in and outside jail), in order to reduce the jail population to well under capacity. Miller v. Marshall County Sheriff, et al, 3:19-cv-00842, USDC Northern District of Indiana, August 2022.

Uninsured motorist claim in Lake County, Indiana where Plaintiff sustained a partially torn rotator cuff tendon, received minimal treatment, and missed no time from work and brought a claim against his insurance company for uninsured motorist benefits. The jury awarded $100,000 in damages despite the Plaintiff asking for over $405,000. Ahrens v. GIE, 45D01-1803-CT-0052, Lake County, Indiana February 2022.

State court defense verdict in a claim brought by a business against the Town of Chesterton for property damages and business loss resulting from a lift station failure and sewer back-up. Indian Oak Inn v. Town of Chesterton, 64D02-1602-CT-1084, Porter County Superior Court December 2021.

Plaintiff brought a Fourteenth Amendment Equal Protection class of one claim against the Town of Chesterton and Dave Novak, a building commissioner, alleging that it was treated dissimilarly than a neighboring property owner regarding a violation of the Town’s nuisance ordinance. The Defense argued that Novak was entitled to qualified immunity and that the Plaintiff had failed to prove a Monell theory of liability against the Town under Section 1983. The Court granted Defendants’ motion for directed verdict entered judgment in favor of the Defendants. Bross Enterprises v. Town of Chesterton, Northern District of Indiana August 2017.

Trial of wrongful death case in February of 2016, Sheriff’s deputy alleged to have provided his wife with a gun that she used to commit suicide while in the scope of his employment. Indiana Court of Appeals reversed Plaintiff’s Tort Claims capped verdict and entered judgment in favor of Sheriff’s Department finding off duty law enforcement officer was not in the scope of his employment. Harris County Sheriff’s Department v. Ayers, 70 N.E.3d 414 (Ind. Ct. App.2017). Transferred denied in the Indiana Supreme Court on May 18, 2017. Floyd County Trial Case No. 22C01-1104-CT-000558.