Walter F. George School of Law
Encyclopedia
Walter F. George
Walter Franklin George was an American politician from the state of Georgia. He was a long-time United States Senator and was President pro tempore. He was a Democrat.-Early years:...
School of Law of Mercer University
Mercer University
Mercer University is an independent, private, coeducational university with a Baptist heritage located in the U.S. state of Georgia. Mercer is the only university of its size in the United States that offers programs in eleven diversified fields of study: liberal arts, business, education, music,...
, founded in 1873, is one of the oldest law schools in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and is the second oldest of Mercer's eleven colleges and schools. The School of Law, with approximately 420 students, is located in Macon, Georgia
Macon, Georgia
Macon is a city located in central Georgia, US. Founded at the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is part of the Macon metropolitan area, and the county seat of Bibb County. A small portion of the city extends into Jones County. Macon is the biggest city in central Georgia...
on its own campus one mile (1.6 km) from Mercer's main campus. The law school building, one of Macon's most recognizable sites, is a three-story partial replica of Independence Hall in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
and is located on Coleman Hill overlooking downtown Macon.
Dean of the School
In May 2010, Mercer University president William D. UnderwoodWilliam D. Underwood
William D. Underwood has served as the eighteenth President of Mercer University since 2006. He was the interim President of Baylor University from 2005 to 2006.-Biography:...
announced Gary J. Simson, former dean of Case Western Reserve University School of Law
Case Western Reserve University School of Law
Case Western Reserve University Franklin Thomas Backus School of Law is the law school at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. It opened in 1892, making it one of the oldest law schools in the country. It was one of the first schools accredited by the American Bar Association and was...
, as the new dean of the Walter F. George School of Law effective July 1, 2010. Simson is a graduate of Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
and Yale Law School
Yale Law School
Yale Law School, or YLS, is the law school of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Established in 1824, it offers the J.D., LL.M., J.S.D. and M.S.L. degrees in law. It also hosts visiting scholars, visiting researchers and a number of legal research centers...
.
Walter F. George
Walter F. George
Walter Franklin George was an American politician from the state of Georgia. He was a long-time United States Senator and was President pro tempore. He was a Democrat.-Early years:...
, a distinguished Mercer Law alumnus, class of 1901, who served as United States Senator from Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
from 1922 to 1957 and as President pro tempore
President pro tempore of the United States Senate
The President pro tempore is the second-highest-ranking official of the United States Senate. The United States Constitution states that the Vice President of the United States is the President of the Senate and the highest-ranking official of the Senate despite not being a member of the body...
from 1955 to 1957. Before election to the Senate, he served as a Judge of the Georgia Court of Appeals
Georgia Court of Appeals
The Georgia Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the U.S. state of Georgia.-Founding of the court:The genesis of the Court of Appeals began with a report by the State Bar of Georgia in 1895, suggesting that the Georgia State Legislature create a new intermediate appellate...
in 1917 and as a Justice of the Georgia Supreme Court from 1917 to 1922. Mercer named its law school the Walter F. George School of Law of Mercer University in 1947. Fred M. Vinson
Fred M. Vinson
Frederick Moore Vinson served the United States in all three branches of government and was the most prominent member of the Vinson political family. In the legislative branch, he was an elected member of the United States House of Representatives from Louisa, Kentucky, for twelve years...
, Chief Justice of the United States
Chief Justice of the United States
The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Chief Justice is one of nine Supreme Court justices; the other eight are the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States...
, participated in the naming ceremony.
The Walter F. George Foundation, created when the school was named, continues to fund scholarships for Mercer law students who have a demonstrated interest in pursuing a career in public service. Walter F. George Foundation Public Service Scholarships cover full tuition for three years of law school along with community service grants for first-year and second-year summer public service internships.
Accreditation and rankings
The School of Law has been a member of the Association of American Law SchoolsAssociation of American Law Schools
The Association of American Law Schools is a non-profit organization of 170 law schools in the United States. Another 25 schools are "non-member fee paid" schools, which are not members but choose to pay AALS dues. Its purpose is to improve the legal profession through the improvement of legal...
since 1923 and has been fully accredited by the American Bar Association
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...
since 1925.
In the 2010 edition of its law school rankings, U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report is an American news magazine published from Washington, D.C. Along with Time and Newsweek it was for many years a leading news weekly, focusing more than its counterparts on political, economic, health and education stories...
ranks Mercer in Tier 3 with schools ranked 101 through 137 of the nation's 184 accredited law schools. The same edition ranks Mercer's legal writing
Legal writing
Legal writing is a type of technical writing used by lawyers, judges, legislators, and others in law to express legal analysis and legal rights and duties.- Authority :...
program first in the nation. The legal writing program has been ranked first or second since US News & World Report began the speciality ranking in 2006. The program was ranked first in 2006 (tied with one other school), second in 2007, and first in 2008 and 2009.
The Princeton Review includes Mercer in its "Best 174 Law Schools: 2010 Edition" and has ranked the faculty among the top ten in nation on its list "Professors Rock (Legally Speaking)". The ranking is based on responses to student surveys on two ratings: the quality of teaching and accessibility of faculty.
In March 2008, National Jurist, a publication for prospective law students, ranked Mercer 41st among the top 50 schools "Where Public Interest Lawyers Go to Law School". In other National Jurist rankings, in January 2005, Mercer was ranked eleventh out of almost 200 law schools for its successful and innovative use of technology. The technology ranking was based in part on Mercer's laptop program, which provides every incoming student with a laptop computer and that has been used as a model for other law schools around the country.
In October 2008, preLaw Magazine ranked Mercer sixth among the Best Public Interest Law Schools. The rating is based on information reported in the E-Guide to Public Interest Law Schools, including student involvement, curriculum and financial factors.
Statistics
The School of Law enrolls approximately 420 students and has a faculty of 34 full-time professors and 33 adjunct professors. The school awards the Juris DoctorJuris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
and a joint Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
/Master of Business Administration
Master of Business Administration
The Master of Business Administration is a :master's degree in business administration, which attracts people from a wide range of academic disciplines. The MBA designation originated in the United States, emerging from the late 19th century as the country industrialized and companies sought out...
in conjunction with Mercer's Eugene W. Stetson School of Business and Economics. The school publishes the Mercer Law Review, the oldest law review in Georgia, and the Journal of Southern Legal History.
The School of Law's model curriculum, the Woodruff Curriculum, named for philanthropist George W. Woodruff
George W. Woodruff
George Waldo Woodruff was an engineer, businessman, and philanthropist in Atlanta, Georgia. He attended the Georgia School of Technology in 1917 and gave generously to both his alma mater and Emory University, including George Waldo Woodruff (August 27, 1895 - February 4, 1987 in Atlanta, Georgia)...
, is viewed as a model for law schools across the United States. The curriculum, based on small classes and a practice oriented approach, focuses on legal ethics
Legal ethics
Legal ethics encompasses an ethical code governing the conduct of persons engaged in the practice of law and persons more generally in the legal sector.-In the United States:...
, professional responsibility
Professional responsibility
Professional responsibility is the area of legal practice that encompasses the duties of attorneys to act in a professional manner, obey the law, avoid conflicts of interest, and put the interests of clients ahead of their own interests....
, and legal writing
Legal writing
Legal writing is a type of technical writing used by lawyers, judges, legislators, and others in law to express legal analysis and legal rights and duties.- Authority :...
and has been honored with the prestigious Gambrell Professionalism Award from the American Bar Association
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...
.
The School of Law houses the Mercer Center for Legal Ethics and Professionalism, established in 2000 and dedicated to fostering and teaching ethics and professionalism in the practice of law, and the National Criminal Defense College, a not-for-profit organization established in 1985 and devoted to improved trial advocacy and trial practice.
The School of Law also houses the Legal Writing Institute
Legal Writing Institute
The Legal Writing Institute is "a non-profit organization dedicated to improving legal writing by providing a forum for discussion and scholarship about legal writing, analysis, and research." LWI maintains several resources for its members including a national conference held every two years,...
, the world's largest organization devoted to improved legal writing
Legal writing
Legal writing is a type of technical writing used by lawyers, judges, legislators, and others in law to express legal analysis and legal rights and duties.- Authority :...
. The Institute's 1,800 members represent attorneys, judges, and legal writing professors in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
The School of Law has one of the largest law school endowments, valued at more than $90 million, in the United States. The endowment was the sixteenth largest in 2000 with the eleventh largest per-student value, over $220,000, and the fourth largest per-student value when adjusted for cost for living, almost $500,000. The endowment, funded in 1947 with $1 million from the friends of Walter F. George
Walter F. George
Walter Franklin George was an American politician from the state of Georgia. He was a long-time United States Senator and was President pro tempore. He was a Democrat.-Early years:...
when the school was named in his honor, has grown remarkably since a $15 million bequest in 1987 from George W. Woodruff
George W. Woodruff
George Waldo Woodruff was an engineer, businessman, and philanthropist in Atlanta, Georgia. He attended the Georgia School of Technology in 1917 and gave generously to both his alma mater and Emory University, including George Waldo Woodruff (August 27, 1895 - February 4, 1987 in Atlanta, Georgia)...
. Income from the endowment allows the school to maintain its low student-faculty ratio (12:1) and funds the student financial aid program.
Law Library
The Furman Smith Law Library, named to honor a distinguished alumnus, is the school's center of legal research. A premier facility, the library is used by lawyers and judges from across the state and recognized for its superior resources and service. The library occupies over 30000 square feet (2,787.1 m²) in a central location on the second and third floors of the law school building. Large windows in the library provide students with views of historic Macon from the law building's location on Coleman Hill. The Furman Smith Law Library contains more than 310,000 volumes dealing with domestic and international law, including 3300 serial titles and a growing number of electronic titles.Mercer Law Review
The Mercer Law Review is edited and published by the students of the Walter F. George School of Law of Mercer University. Mercer Law Review was founded in 1949 and is the oldest continually published law review in Georgia.According to the 2001-2008 Washington and Lee University School of Law
Washington and Lee University School of Law
The Washington and Lee University School of Law is a private American Bar Association-accredited law school located in Lexington in the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia. Facilities are currently on the campus of Washington and Lee University in Sydney Lewis Hall...
rankings of 198 general-content legal journals printed in the United States, the Mercer Law Review ranked in the top one-third in the nation for citations in judicial opinions.
Alumni
Notable Mercer Law alumni are listed below. Alumni without dates of service (e.g., 1900-1901) are presently serving in the positions indicated.Judiciary -- Federal Courts and State Appellate Courts
- A. Harris Adams - Judge, Georgia Court of AppealsGeorgia Court of AppealsThe Georgia Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the U.S. state of Georgia.-Founding of the court:The genesis of the Court of Appeals began with a report by the State Bar of Georgia in 1895, suggesting that the Georgia State Legislature create a new intermediate appellate...
- Griffin B. Bell - Federal Appeals Court Judge, 1962-1976; 72nd Attorney General of the United States, 1977-1979
- Reason C. Bell - Chief Justice, Georgia Supreme Court, 1943-1946; Associate Justice, 1932-1943 and 1946-1949; Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals, 1922-1932
- William Augustus BootleWilliam Augustus BootleWilliam Augustus Bootle was an American attorney and jurist noted for helping oversee desegregation in the Southern United States.-Early life and education:...
- Judge, Federal District Court for the Middle District of GeorgiaUnited States District Court for the Middle District of GeorgiaThe U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia is a United States District Court which serves the residents of sixty-nine counties from seven divisions from its headquarters in Macon, Georgia....
, 1954-1981; ordered admission of the first African-American to the University of GeorgiaUniversity of GeorgiaThe University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States... - G. Harrold Carswell - Federal Appeals Court Judge, 1969-1970; unsuccessful nominee to the United States Supreme Court, 1970
- Abraham Benjamin CongerAbraham Benjamin CongerAbraham Benjamin Conger was a United States federal judge.-Biography:Born in Tift County, Georgia, Conger received an A.B. from Mercer University in 1911 and an LL.B. from the same institution in 1912...
- Judge, Federal District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, 1949-1953 - Bascom Sine DeaverBascom Sine DeaverBascom Sine Deaver was a United States federal judge.Born in Union County, Georgia, Deaver received an A.B. from Mercer University in 1907 and an LL.B. from Mercer University in 1910. He was in private practice in Macon, Georgia from 1910 to 1922...
- Judge, Federal District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, 1928-1944 - Sara L. Doyle - Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals
- Walter Homer Drake - Bankruptcy Judge, Federal District Court for the Northern District of GeorgiaUnited States District Court for the Northern District of GeorgiaThe United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia is a United States District Court which serves the residents of forty-six counties...
; Chairman, Mercer UniversityMercer UniversityMercer University is an independent, private, coeducational university with a Baptist heritage located in the U.S. state of Georgia. Mercer is the only university of its size in the United States that offers programs in eleven diversified fields of study: liberal arts, business, education, music,...
Board of Trustees, 2008-2010 - Homer C. Eberhardt - Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals, 1961-1974
- Jule Wimberly Felton - Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals, 1937-1969; Chief Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals, 1954-1969; Georgia Supreme Court Justice, 1969-1971
- Hardy Gregory - Georgia Supreme Court Justice, 1981-1989
- John B. Guerry - Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals, 1933-1940
- Albert John HendersonAlbert John HendersonAlbert John Henderson was a United States federal judge.Born in Canton, Georgia, Henderson was a Sergeant in the United States Army from 1943 to 1945, and then received an LL.B. from Mercer University School of Law in 1947...
- Federal Appeals Court Judge, 1979-1999; Judge, Federal District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, 1968-1979 - Robert F. Hershner - Chief Bankruptcy Judge, Federal District Court for the Middle District of Georgia
- Claude W. Hicks, Jr. - Federal Magistrate Judge, Federal District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, 1983-2010
- William Leroy McMurray - Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals, 1976-2000
- M. Yvette Miller - Chief Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals; the first African-American woman to serve on the court
- Richard Henry MillsRichard Henry MillsRichard Henry Mills is a senior United States federal judge on the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois....
- Judge, Federal District Court for the Central District of IllinoisUnited States District Court for the Central District of IllinoisThe U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois serves the residents of forty-six counties from its four courthouses... - Carlton MobleyCarlton MobleyWilliam Carlton Mobley was a noted jurist and politician from the American state of Georgia.Mobley was born near Hillsboro, Jones County, Georgia; attended the common schools; and graduated from Mercer University with a law degree in 1928...
- Chief Justice, Georgia Supreme Court, 1972-1974; Associate Justice, 1954-1972 - David M. Parker - Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals, 1944-1949
- Willie Louis SandsWillie Louis SandsW. Louis Sands is a United States federal judge.Born in Bradley, Georgia, Sands received a B.A. from Mercer University in 1971 and a J.D. from Mercer University School of Law in 1974. He was a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army Reserve Signal Corps in 1974, remaining in the Reserve until...
- Judge, Federal District Court for the Middle District of Georgia; the first African-American to serve on the court - Hugh Thompson - Georgia Supreme Court Justice
- Julian Webb - Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals, 1974-1979
- Charles W. Worrill - Judge, Georgia Court of Appeals, 1949-1953; Georgia Supreme Court Justice, 1953-1954
Politics
- Elizabeth P. Archer - Georgia Inspector General, 2006-2011
- Doug BarnardDoug Barnard, Jr.Druie Douglas Barnard, Jr. is a former United States congressman from Georgia.Barnard attended the Richmond County public schools and graduated from the Academy of Richmond County in 1939. He attended Augusta College from 1939 to 1940, then graduated in 1943 with an A.B. from Mercer University in...
- United States RepresentativeUnited States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
, Georgia's 10th CongressionalUnited States CongressThe United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
district, 1977-1993 - Dan J. Bradley - President, Legal Services CorporationLegal Services CorporationThe Legal Services Corporation is a private, non-profit corporation established by the United States Congress. It seeks to ensure equal access to justice under the law for all Americans by providing civil legal assistance to those who otherwise would be unable to afford it...
, 1979-1982 - J. Eugene Cook - Georgia Attorney GeneralState Attorney GeneralThe state attorney general in each of the 50 U.S. states and territories is the chief legal advisor to the state government and the state's chief law enforcement officer. In some states, the attorney general serves as the head of a state department of justice, with responsibilities similar to those...
, 1945-1965, the longest serving Attorney General in Georgia history; Georgia Supreme Court Justice, 1965-1967 - Cathy CoxCathy CoxLera Catharine "Cathy" Cox is a Georgia politician, a member of the Democratic Party, the former Secretary of State of Georgia, and a candidate for Governor of Georgia in 2006...
- Georgia Secretary of State, 1999-2007, the first woman elected to this position; President, Young Harris CollegeYoung Harris CollegeYoung Harris College is a private, Methodist-affiliated liberal arts college located in the mountains of northeast Georgia. The current president is Cathy Cox, former Georgia Secretary of State.-Origins:... - Edward E. CoxEdward E. CoxEdward Eugene "Eugene" or "Goober" Cox served as a U.S. Representative from Georgia for nearly twenty-eight years. A conservative Democrat who supported segregation and opposed President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's "New Deal," Cox became the most senior Democrat on the House Committee on Rules...
- United States Representative, Georgia's 2nd Congressional district, 1925-1952 - Nathan DealNathan DealJohn Nathan Deal is a United States politician, the 82nd and current Governor of Georgia. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1992 but switched to the Republican Party in 1995...
- United States Representative, Georgia's 9th Congressional district, 1993-2010; elected Governor of Georgia in 2010 - Julia C. Dudley - United States AttorneyUnited States AttorneyUnited States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
, Federal District Court for the Western District of VirginiaUnited States District Court for the Western District of VirginiaThe United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia is a United States district court.Appeals from the Western District of Virginia are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit The United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia (in...
, 2008-2009 - Peter Zack GeerPeter Zack GeerPeter Zack Geer was a Democratic politician from Georgia.Geer was born in Colquitt, Miller County, Georgia. He graduated from Mercer University Walter F. George School of Law in 1951 and was a prominent attorney...
- Georgia Lieutenant Governor, 1963-1967 - Walter F. GeorgeWalter F. GeorgeWalter Franklin George was an American politician from the state of Georgia. He was a long-time United States Senator and was President pro tempore. He was a Democrat.-Early years:...
- United States SenatorUnited States SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from Georgia, 1922-1957, served as President pro temporePresident pro tempore of the United States SenateThe President pro tempore is the second-highest-ranking official of the United States Senate. The United States Constitution states that the Vice President of the United States is the President of the Senate and the highest-ranking official of the Senate despite not being a member of the body...
, 1955-1957; namesake of Mercer's Law School - Deron Hicks - Georgia Inspector General
- Anthony J. Jenkins - United States AttorneyUnited States AttorneyUnited States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
, Federal District Court for the District of the Virgin Islands, 2005-2008 - Buckner F. Melton - Mayor of MaconMacon, GeorgiaMacon is a city located in central Georgia, US. Founded at the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is part of the Macon metropolitan area, and the county seat of Bibb County. A small portion of the city extends into Jones County. Macon is the biggest city in central Georgia...
, 1975-1979 - Michael Meyer von BremenMichael Meyer von BremenMichael S. Meyer von Bremen, a Democrat from Albany, was elected to the Georgia State Senate in 1998 to represent the 12th Senatorial District of Georgia. He served until 2009; he did not seek re-election and instead ran for a seat on the Georgia Court of Appeals in 2008. From 2002 until he...
- Georgia State Senator, 1999-2009; served as the Democratic PartyDemocratic Party (United States)The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Senate Minority LeaderMinority leaderIn U.S. politics, the minority leader is the floor leader of the second largest caucus in a legislative body. Given the two-party nature of the U.S. system, the minority leader is almost inevitably either a Republican or a Democrat, with their counterpart being of the opposite party. The position...
, 2002-2009 - John OxendineJohn OxendineJohn W. Oxendine is an American politician who served four terms as Insurance Commissioner of the U.S. state of Georgia. Oxendine is of Lumbee heritage, an Indian tribe from North Carolina. A member of the Republican party, he was first elected commissioner in 1994 and was reelected in 1998,...
- Georgia Insurance Commissioner, 1995-2011 - G. F. Peterman - United States AttorneyUnited States AttorneyUnited States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
(acting), Federal District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, 2000-2001 and 2009 - Robert ReichertRobert ReichertRobert Reichert is the current Democratic mayor of Macon, Georgia, the sixth largest city in the state, located in the central portion of the state some seventy miles south of Atlanta...
- Mayor of MaconMacon, GeorgiaMacon is a city located in central Georgia, US. Founded at the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is part of the Macon metropolitan area, and the county seat of Bibb County. A small portion of the city extends into Jones County. Macon is the biggest city in central Georgia...
and former member of the Georgia House of RepresentativesGeorgia House of RepresentativesThe Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly of the U.S. state of Georgia.-Composition:... - Dwight L. RogersDwight L. RogersDwight Laing Rogers was a U.S. Representative from Florida.Born near Reidsville, Georgia, Rogers attended the public schools and Locust Grove Institute at Locust Grove, Georgia. He graduated from the University of Georgia in 1909 and from the law department of Mercer University in Macon, Georgia...
- United States Representative, Florida's 6th Congressional district, 1945-1954 - Christopher N. SmithChristopher N. SmithChristopher N. Smith is an American attorney at law and an American foreign consul appointed by the ruling monarch Margrethe II of Denmark.- Biography :...
- Honorary ConsulConsulConsul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
of the Kingdom of DenmarkKingdom of DenmarkThe Kingdom of Denmark or the Danish Realm , is a constitutional monarchy and sovereign state consisting of Denmark proper in northern Europe and two autonomous constituent countries, the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic and Greenland in North America. Denmark is the hegemonial part, where the... - Malcolm C. TarverMalcolm C. TarverMalcolm Connor Tarver was a U.S. Representative from Georgia.Born in Rural Vale, Georgia, Tarver attended the public schools.He was graduated from the law department of Mercer University, Macon, Georgia, in 1904....
- United States Representative, Georgia's 7th Congressional district, 1927-1947 - Richard S. Thompson - United States AttorneyUnited States AttorneyUnited States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
, Federal District Court for the Southern District of GeorgiaUnited States District Court for the Southern District of GeorgiaThe U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia is a United States District Court which serves the residents of thirty-four counties in Georgia through six divisions....
, 2001-2004 - Carl VinsonCarl VinsonCarl Vinson was a United States Representative from Georgia. He was a Democrat and the first person to serve for more than 50 years in the United States House of Representatives...
- United States Representative for over 50 years, 1914-1965; long-time Chairman, House Armed Services CommitteeUnited States House Committee on Armed Servicesthumb|United States House Committee on Armed Services emblemThe U.S. House Committee on Armed Services, commonly known as the House Armed Services Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives...
; has been called the "patriarch of the armed services" and the "father of the two-ocean navy"; namesake of the USS Carl Vinson - William S. WestWilliam S. WestWilliam Stanley West was a United States Senator from the state of Georgia. He was a Democrat.-Biography:...
- United States Senator from Georgia, 1914-1914 - J. Mark WilcoxJ. Mark WilcoxJames Mark Wilcox was a U.S. Representative from Florida.Born in Willacoochee, Georgia, Wilcox attended the public schools and Emory College, Atlanta, Georgia....
- United States Representative, Florida's 4th Congressional district, 1933-1939 - John S. WoodJohn Stephens WoodJohn Stephens Wood was an American politician from the state of Georgia, USA. He served in the United States House of Representatives, 1931–1935 and 1945–1953....
- United States Representative, Georgia's 9th Congressional district, 1931-1935 and 1945-1953; Chairman, House Un-American Activities CommitteeHouse Un-American Activities CommitteeThe House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
, 1949-1953
Arts, media, and non-government public service
- Charles R. Adams III - adjunct law professor; author of Georgia Law of Torts
- Glen AshmanGlen AshmanGlen Edward Ashman is a jurist who has been a judge in the Municipal Court of East Point, Georgia since 1988. He was last reappointed on July 2, 2007. The is one of the state's busiest municipal courts, handling traffic, housing code, and other criminal cases.- Education :Ashman received his B.A...
- author of the Georgia Municipal Court Judges BenchbookBenchbookA benchbook is a book providing an overview of legal procedure for a judge. These books are used by judges while hearing cases as guides to assist in the disposition of a case. A benchbook is not a source of substantive law but rather a guide to procedure. Benchbooks are used in conjunction with... - Steve Berry - author of six novels including several New York Times bestsellers
- Brainerd CurrieBrainerd CurrieBrainerd Currie was a law professor noted for his work in conflict of laws and his creation of the concept of the governmental interests analysis. He was the father of law professor David P. Currie....
- law professor; noted conflict of lawsConflict of lawsConflict of laws is a set of procedural rules that determines which legal system and which jurisdiction's applies to a given dispute...
scholar who developed the characterisationCharacterisation (conflict)In conflict of laws, characterisation is the second stage in the procedure to resolve a lawsuit involving a foreign law element. This process is described in English law as classification and as qualification in French law...
concept of governmental interest analysis - Deryl Dantzler - law professor; Dean of the National Criminal Defense College; recipient of Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
- Gerald M. Edenfield - President, State Bar of Georgia, 2007-2008
- Nancy GraceNancy GraceNancy Ann Grace is an American legal commentator, television host, television journalist, and former prosecutor. She frequently discusses issues from what she describes as a victims' rights standpoint, with an outspoken style that has won her both praise and condemnation...
- anchor for Court TVCourt TVtruTV is an American cable television network owned by Turner Broadcasting, a subsidiary of Time Warner. The network launched as Court TV in 1991, changing to truTV in 2008...
, legal commentator, and host of Nancy GraceNancy Grace (TV program)Nancy Grace is an American current affairs program hosted by legal commentator Nancy Grace that airs weekdays on HLN which mainly deals with current-day true crime cases.-Controversies:...
on the Headline News television network - Frank C. Jones - President, State Bar of Georgia, 1969-1970
- Rudolph N. Patterson - President, State Bar of Georgia, 1999-2000
- James C. Rehberg - law professor; recognized as an expert in Georgia real estate law
- Jay Sekulow - Chief Counsel, American Center for Law and JusticeAmerican Center for Law and JusticeThe American Center for Law & Justice is a conservative Christian, pro-life group that was founded in 1990 by evangelical Pat Robertson.-History:...
- Evett L. Simmons - President, National Bar AssociationNational Bar AssociationThe National Bar Association was established in 1925 as the "Negro Bar Association" after Gertrude Rush, George H. Woodson, S. Joe Brown, James B. Morris, and Charles P. Howard, Sr. were denied membership in the American Bar Association. It represents the interests of African-American attorneys in...
, 2000-2001 - Neil Skene - career journalist; President and Publisher, Congressional QuarterlyCongressional QuarterlyCongressional Quarterly, Inc., or CQ, is a privately owned publishing company that produces a number of publications reporting primarily on the United States Congress...
, 1990-1997 - Kent W. Spence - noted trial attorney; son and law firm partner of noted trial attorney Gerry SpenceGerry SpenceGerry Spence is a trial lawyer in the United States. In 2008, he announced he would retire, at age 79, at the end of the Geoffrey Fieger trial in Detroit, MI. Spence states that he "has never lost a criminal case either as a prosecutor or a defense attorney...
- Robert L. Steed - senior partner, King & SpaldingKing & SpaldingKing & Spalding LLP is an American law firm with 125 years of service. It was founded in Atlanta, Georgia in 1885 by Alexander C. King and Jack Spalding. The firm has expanded nationally, with offices in Austin, Charlotte, Houston, New York, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, and Washington, D.C...
; noted author and humorist - L. Lin Wood - high profile trial attorney; has represented Richard JewellRichard JewellRichard A. Jewell was an American security guard who became known in connection with the Centennial Olympic Park bombing at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, United States...
, the parents of JonBenét RamseyJonBenét RamseyJonBenét Patricia Ramsey was an American child beauty pageant contestant who was murdered in her home in Boulder, Colorado, in 1996. The six-year-old's body was found in the basement of the family home nearly eight hours after she was reported missing. She had been struck on the head and strangled...
, Gary ConditGary ConditGary Adrian Condit is a former American politician, a Democrat who served in the House of Representatives from 1989 to 2003...
, Kobe BryantKobe BryantKobe Bean Bryant is an American professional basketball player who plays shooting guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School, where he was recognized as the top high school...
, and Herman CainHerman CainHerman Cain is a candidate for the 2012 U.S. Republican Party presidential nomination.Cain has a background as a business executive, syndicated columnist, and radio host from Georgia. He served as chairman and CEO of Godfather's Pizza from 1986 to 1996...
Recent events involving faculty and alumni
- Nathan DealNathan DealJohn Nathan Deal is a United States politician, the 82nd and current Governor of Georgia. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1992 but switched to the Republican Party in 1995...
, Class of 1966, was elected Governor of Georgia in 2010. Deal and John OxendineJohn OxendineJohn W. Oxendine is an American politician who served four terms as Insurance Commissioner of the U.S. state of Georgia. Oxendine is of Lumbee heritage, an Indian tribe from North Carolina. A member of the Republican party, he was first elected commissioner in 1994 and was reelected in 1998,...
, Class of 1987, Georgia Insurance Commissioner, were both RepublicanRepublican Party (United States)The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
candidates in the 2010 gubernatorial electionGeorgia gubernatorial election, 2010The 2010 Georgia gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 2010. Incumbent Republican Governor Sonny Perdue was term-limited and unable to seek re-election. Primary elections for the Republican and Democratic parties took place on July 20, with a Republican runoff on August 10. The...
, with Deal advancing to a runoff for the Republican nomination. Deal won the party runoff and then the general election. - Professor Jim MarshallJim Marshall (U.S. politician)James Creel "Jim" Marshall is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2003 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party...
, a long-time faculty member, was defeated for re-election in 2010; he was seeking a fifth term in the United States House of RepresentativesUnited States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
representing Georgia's 8th Congressional district. - A. Harris Adams, Class of 1971, was re-elected in 2010 to the Georgia Court of AppealsGeorgia Court of AppealsThe Georgia Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the U.S. state of Georgia.-Founding of the court:The genesis of the Court of Appeals began with a report by the State Bar of Georgia in 1895, suggesting that the Georgia State Legislature create a new intermediate appellate...
. M. Yvette Miller, Class of 1980, and Sara L. Doyle, Class of 1994, are the other Mercer Law graduates on the court. - M. Yvette Miller, Class of 1980, the first African-American woman to serve on the Georgia Court of AppealsGeorgia Court of AppealsThe Georgia Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the U.S. state of Georgia.-Founding of the court:The genesis of the Court of Appeals began with a report by the State Bar of Georgia in 1895, suggesting that the Georgia State Legislature create a new intermediate appellate...
, became the court's Chief Judge in January 2009. - Michael J. Moore, Class of 1993, was nominated in 2009 by President Barack ObamaBarack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
to be United States AttorneyUnited States AttorneyUnited States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
for the United States District Court for the Middle District of GeorgiaUnited States District Court for the Middle District of GeorgiaThe U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia is a United States District Court which serves the residents of sixty-nine counties from seven divisions from its headquarters in Macon, Georgia....
. He replaced G. F. Peterman, Class of 1976, who was the United States Attorney (acting). - Marc T. Treadwell, Class of 1981, was nominated in 2010 by President Barack Obama to be a Judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia.
- Thomas P. Bishop, Class of 1985, was elected in 2010 by the Georgia Chamber of Commerce as the Chair of its Law and Judiciary Policy Committee. Bishop is the General Counsel of Georgia PowerGeorgia PowerGeorgia Power is an electric utility headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It is the largest of the four electric utilities that are owned and operated by Southern Company....
, the largest electric utilityElectric utilityAn electric utility is a company that engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity for sale generally in a regulated market. The electrical utility industry is a major provider of energy in most countries. It is indispensable to factories, commercial establishments,...
in Georgia. - Erick EricksonErick EricksonErick Erickson , also known as Erick-Woods Erickson, is a politically conservative American blogger and managing editor of the blog site RedState.com. In 2010, he became a political contributor for CNN's John King, USA...
, Class of 2000, became a CNNCNNCable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
political contributor in 2010 for John King, USAJohn King, USAJohn King, USA is an hour-long television news show that is hosted by John King on CNN. The show debuted on March 22, 2010.It airs at 7:00 PM Eastern, and as a result, shortened The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer to 2 hours...
. - Brad BryantWilliam Bradley BryantWilliam Bradley "Brad" Bryant was appointed superintendent of public schools for the U.S. state of Georgia by Gov. Sonny Perdue in 2010, filling the vacancy left by the resignation of Kathy Cox...
, Class of 1979, was appointed SuperintendentSuperintendent (education)In education in the United States, a superintendent is an individual who has executive oversight and administration rights, usually within an educational entity or organization....
of the Georgia public schools in 2010 by Governor Sonny PerdueSonny PerdueGeorge Ervin "Sonny" Perdue III, was the 81st Governor of Georgia. Upon his inauguration in January 2003, he became the first Republican governor of Georgia since Benjamin F. Conley served during Reconstruction in the 1870s....
. The position is one of Georgia's eight statewide executive offices.