King reappointed as head of Court of Appeals

JACKSON – Judge Leslie D. King, of Greenville, has been reappointed as Chief Judge of the Mississippi Court of Appeals. King’s reappointment became effective on Dec. 21, after Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr., signed an order reappointing King as the administrative head of the Court of Appeals.

Chief Judge King is the longest serving judge of the 10-member Mississippi Court of Appeals, having served since the intermediate appellate court began operation in January 1995. He has served as Chief Judge since April 30, 2004. Mississippi state appellate judges are elected by the people to eight-year terms.

The 10-member Court of Appeals hears appeals assigned by the Mississippi Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has discretion over whether to review Court of Appeals decisions.

The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court chooses one member of the Court of Appeals to act as Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals. The Chief Judge appointment is for four years.

King’s term begins on Jan. 1, 2011, and ends Dec. 31, 2014.

Chief Justice Waller said, “Chief Judge King has demonstrated outstanding leadership. He has a tireless work ethic, writes excellent opinions and has ensured that the opinions and orders of the Court of Appeals are timely and scholarly.”

“I would like to express my appreciation to Chief Justice Waller for his confidence in reappointing me to this position,” Chief Judge King said. “During his two years as Chief Justice, he has provided excellent leadership, and it has been a pleasure to work with him and the other members of the Supreme Court.”

Chief Judge King was elected to the Court of Appeals in 1994 and began hearing cases in January 1995. He previously served for 15 years in the Mississippi House of Representatives, where he was vice-chair of the House Ways and Means Committee and vice-chair of the Conservation and Water Resources Committee. He is a former Washington County Youth Court counselor, prosecutor and public defender, and former Metcalfe Municipal Judge.

“I owe a debt of gratitude to the members of this court for the hard work that they have done and for the manner in which they have cooperated as we have tried to timely respond to the judicial matters placed before us,” Chief Judge King said. “This has been an extremely hard-working court. It’s done everything that it could to produce a good product and a timely product.”

“I just think that says something about the caliber of people who have been elected to serve on this court,” Chief Judge King continued. “The staff of this court has worked extremely hard too. All of that has assisted me in doing my job over these last several years as Chief Judge. I look forward to continuing to work with them.”