Joseph Dawson III (born 1970)
[United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees: Joseph Dawson III](_blank)
/ref> is a United States district judge
The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...
of the .
Education
Dawson earned his Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
from The Citadel, and his 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 ...
from the University of South Carolina School of Law
The University of South Carolina School of Law, also known as South Carolina Law School, is a professional school within the University of South Carolina. The school of law was founded in 1867, and remains the only public and non-profit law schoo ...
.["President Donald J. Trump Announces Judicial Nominee" White House, October 1, 2020](_blank)
Legal career
From 2001–2020, Dawson operated his own law practice and focused on general civil litigation and providing strategic advice to small businesses. He also currently served as County Attorney for Charleston County, South Carolina
Charleston County is located in the U.S. state of South Carolina along the Atlantic coast. As of the 2020 census, its population was 408,235, making it the third most populous county in South Carolina (behind Greenville and Richland counties). ...
, where he was responsible for managing and overseeing all legal matters for the county and its officials.
Federal judicial service
On October 1, 2020, President Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
announced his intent to nominate Dawson to the seat vacated by Judge Terry L. Wooten
Terry L. Wooten (born 1954) is a Senior Status, Senior United States federal judge, United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina.
Education and career
Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Louisvil ...
, who assumed senior status
Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...
on February 28, 2019. Dawson was recommended by Senator Tim Scott. On October 23, 2020, his nomination was sent to the Senate. On November 18, 2020, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee. On December 10, 2020, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 13–9 vote. On December 16, 2020, the full United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
invoked cloture on his nomination by a 56–39 vote. His nomination was confirmed later that day by a 56–39 vote. He received his judicial commission on December 22, 2020.
A judicial reform organization filed a formal complaint against Dawson over his ongoing $216,000 contract with the Charleston County government shortly after his confirmation to the . Charleston County amended Dawson’s controversial exit contract, and now the federal judge will not receive any cut of the county’s potential payout from the national opioid pharmaceutical litigation. Dawson also had asked the county to clarify that he won’t be providing any legal services to the county in return for the $216,000 the county paid him, Council Chairman Teddie Pryor said. In 2022, Dawson was reprimanded for signing a contract with Charleston County, where he long served as county attorney prior to his judicial appointment, that guaranteed him $216,000 plus a fee for any opioid litigation settlements it won after he joined the federal bench.
See also
* List of African-American jurists
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dawson, Joseph III
1970 births
Living people
20th-century American lawyers
21st-century American lawyers
21st-century American judges
African-American lawyers
African-American judges
United States Army Judge Advocate General's Corps
Judges of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina
Lawyers from Columbia, South Carolina
National Guard (United States) officers
South Carolina lawyers
The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina alumni
United States Army officers
United States district court judges appointed by Donald Trump
University of South Carolina School of Law alumni