Oil on linen canvas, by Vicars Lynn McKinney, 2003

Born 1959 in Richlands, Virginia.

Elected by the General Assembly on February 19, 2003 to an eight-year term beginning April 1, 2003, filling the vacancy created by the election of G. Steven Agee as justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia. Service terminated by election as justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia.

Education:
College of William and Mary, B.A., 1980
University of Dayton, J.D., 1984

Other judicial service:
Justice, Supreme Court of Virginia, 2011-2019.

Professional career:
Staff associate, National Center for State Courts, 1980-1981.
Private practice of law in Abingdon, Virginia, 1984-1986 and 1989-2002.
Private practice of law in Kingsport, Tennessee, 1986-1989.
Chief deputy attorney general, 2002-2003.
Dean, Appalachian School of Law, 2019-2021.
Chief Executive Officer, Virginia Tech Foundation, 2021- .

Supreme Court of Virginia portrait

Sources:
Elected, Journals of the Senate of Virginia, 2003 Regular Session, 1185; elected Supreme Court of Virginia justice, Journals of the Senate of Virginia, 2011 Special Session I, 119; sworn in on August 1, 2011, 282 Va., v; birthplace, Martindale Hubble Law Directory (Summit, NJ: Martindale-Hubble, Inc.); 1986 edition; education and career, The American Bench: Judges of the Nation (Forster-Long, Inc., 2009), 2451, and transcript of investiture on September 1, 2011, published in 282 Va., xii-xxv.