Born 1949 in Lewistown, Pennsylvania.
Appointed by Governor Timothy M. Kaine on November 26, 2007 to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of James W. Benton. Elected by the General Assembly on February 8, 2008 to an eight-year term beginning February 1, 2008. Service terminated by election to the Supreme Court of Virginia.
Education:
College of William and Mary, A.B., 1971
College of William and Mary, J.D., 1974
Other judicial service:
Judge, General District Court, Prince William County, 1990-1993.
Judge, Thirty-First Judicial Circuit, 1993-2007.
Justice, Supreme Court of Virginia, 2008-2015 (senior justice 2015-present).
Professional career:
Private practice of law in Woodbridge, Virginia,1974-1986.
Assistant commonwealth’s attorney, Prince William County, Virginia, 1986-1990.
Supreme Court of Virginia portrait
Sources:
Appointed, press release, Office of Governor Timothy M. Kaine, November 26, 2007; elected, Journals of the Senate, 2008 Regular Session, 583; appointed justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia and sworn in, 276 Va., v; oath, ix; confirmed by the General Assembly, Journals of the Senate of Virginia, 2009 Regular Session, 651; career, transcript of investiture on September 5, 2008, published in 276 Va., xi-xxii; birthplace and education, Martindale-Hubble Law Directory (Summit, NJ: Martindale-Hubble, Inc., 1954-), 1980 ed., entry for Compton, Latimer, Compton, & Compton, 1980; see also Theresa Vargas, “County Judges on Rise at Circuit, Appeals Courts,” Washington Post, November 29, 2007, PW01.