Cory Todd Wilson (born August 8, 1970) is an American attorney and jurist serving as a

U.S. circuit judge In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. ...

of the

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (in case citations, 5th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * Eastern District of Louisiana * Mi ...

. Wilson was previously a judge on the

Mississippi Court of Appeals The Mississippi Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the state of Mississippi. A creation of the Mississippi Legislature, the court began operations in 1995 for the purpose of relieving a backlog of cases before the Sup ...

and a member of the

Mississippi House of Representatives The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected fo ...

Early life and education

Wilson was born in 1970 in Pascagoula, Mississippi. He graduated from the University of Mississippi in 1992 with a Bachelor of Business Administration ''summa cum laude'' and also received the Taylor Medal in Economics, awarded to the top student in the department. He then attended Yale Law School, where he was a member of the ''

Yale Law Journal The ''Yale Law Journal'' (YLJ), known also as the ''Yale Law Review'', is a student-run law review affiliated with the Yale Law School. Published continuously since 1891, it is the most widely known of the eight law reviews published by students ...

'' and an Olin Fellow in Economics. He graduated in 1995 with a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

Legal and legislative career

Upon graduation from law school, Wilson served as a law clerk to Judge Emmett Ripley Cox of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. He also served as a White House Fellow in the Department of Defense as a Special Assistant to Secretary of Defense

Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, government official and businessman who served as Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under president Gerald Ford, and again from 2001 to 2006 under Presi ...

. Before serving in the Mississippi legislature, Wilson served as Senior Advisor and Counsel in the Mississippi State Treasurer's Office and as Deputy Secretary of State in the Mississippi Secretary of State's Office. Wilson has been an intermittent member of the Federalist Society, including while at Yale Law School from 1992 to 1995, and then joining the Mississippi chapter from 1996 to 2005 and again since 2019.

Mississippi House of Representatives

Wilson served as a member of the

from 2016 to 2019.

Judicial career

State judicial service

In December 2018, Wilson was appointed to the

to the seat vacated by Kenny Griffis, who was elevated to the Mississippi Supreme Court. He was sworn into office on February 15, 2019. His service as a state judge ended on July 2, 2020 when he was elevated as a Circuit Judge to the Fifth Circuit Court.

Federal judicial service

Withdrawn nomination to district court

On August 28, 2019, President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Wilson to serve as a United States district judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi. On October 15, his nomination was sent to the Senate. President Trump nominated Wilson to the seat vacated by Judge Louis Guirola Jr., who assumed senior status on March 23, 2018. On January 3, 2020, his nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate. On January 6, 2020, his renomination was sent to the Senate. On January 8, 2020, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on his nomination. During his confirmation hearing, some senators asked about Wilson's past comments on social media about President Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (; ; born October 13, 1989), also known by her initials AOC, is an American politician and activist. She has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 14th congressional district since 2019, as a member of th ...

, as well as his previous positions, as a state legislator, on abortion, LGBT rights, the Affordable Care Act, and voting rights. His nomination to that district court was withdrawn on May 4, 2020 when he was nominated to the 5th Circuit Court.

Court of appeals service

On March 30, 2020, President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Wilson to serve as a United States circuit judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, to fill the seat vacated by Judge E. Grady Jolly, who assumed senior status on October 3, 2017. On May 4, 2020, his nomination was sent to the Senate. On May 18, 2020, the American Bar Association rated Wilson as "well qualified," its highest rating. On May 20, 2020, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Wilson's nomination. On June 11, 2020, Wilson's nomination was reported out of committee by a 12–10 vote. On June 22, 2020, the Senate invoked cloture on Wilson's nomination by a 51–43 vote. On June 24, 2020, Wilson's nomination was confirmed by a 52–48 vote. Wilson's confirmation marked the 200th confirmation of a federal judge nominated by Donald Trump. Wilson was the sixth judge nominated by Trump to be confirmed to the Fifth Circuit. Wilson received his judicial commission on July 3, 2020.

References

External links

* * , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Cory T. 1970 births Living people 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers 21st-century American judges 21st-century American politicians Federalist Society members Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Republican Party members of the Mississippi House of Representatives Mississippi College School of Law faculty Mississippi Court of Appeals judges Mississippi lawyers People from Pascagoula, Mississippi United States court of appeals judges appointed by Donald Trump University of Mississippi alumni White House Fellows Yale Law School alumni