BATON ROUGE, La. — A state appeals court has thrown out the $2 million verdict a jury awarded former University of Louisiana at Lafayette football coach Jerry Baldwin in a lawsuit claiming racial discrimination in his firing.

In an opinion released Wednesday, the state 1st Circuit Court of Appeal cited problems with jury selection, confusion over the jury verdict form and an expert witness who should not have been allowed to testify.

A three-judge appeals panel wrote that "a fair, impartial resolution requires a new trial."

"This ruling clears the way for a new trial, at which we will continue to vigorously contest Coach Baldwin’s allegations," ULL's attorneys in the case, the Oats and Hudson firm, said in a written statement. "We are confident that at a fair trial the jury will recognize that he was fired because of his 6 wins and 27 losses and not because of his race."

Baldwin's attorney, G. Karl Bernard, said he will ask the appeal court to reconsider its ruling and, if that fails, ask the state Supreme Court to review the decision.

If those efforts are not successful, Bernard said he will take the case back to trial.

The appeals court ruling noted two decisions by 19th Judicial District Judge Don Johnson in Baton Rouge as critical in affecting the fairness of the trial.

In the first, the judge refused to dismiss a black woman juror who said she had been subjected to racial discrimination by a white supervisor while working as a state employee.

ULL attorneys said her experience could lead to a bias in favor of Baldwin, but the judge denied the challenge to the juror when Baldwin's attorneys argued the university wanted to dismiss the juror because she was black.

The woman had said she could put her experience aside and render a fair decision, but the appeals panel wrote the university had a "reasonable basis" to suspect she might not.

The appeals court also found Johnson wrongly granted "expert witness" status to a man who testified about how being fired might make it difficult for Baldwin to obtain another coaching job.

The appeals judge ruled that the man offered only a personal view unsupported by any "indicia of reliability."

Baldwin, ULL's first black head football coach, alleges he was fired in 2001 for racial reasons.

The university has maintained the coach was fired because of his losing record of 6-27 in three seasons and weak attendance at home football games.

Information from: The Advocate, http://www.2theadvocate.com