William Walter "Billy" Wilkins (born 1942) is a former

United States 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. Cou ...

of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and a former United States District Judge of the

United States District Court for the District of South Carolina The United States District Court for the District of South Carolina (in case citations, D.S.C.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of South Carolina. Court is held in the cities of Aiken, Anderson, Beaufort, Charlest ...

Education and career

Born in Anderson,

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, Wilkins received a

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 ...

degree from

Davidson College Davidson College is a private liberal arts college in Davidson, North Carolina. It was established in 1837 by the Concord Presbytery and named after Revolutionary War general William Lee Davidson, who was killed at the nearby Battle of Cowan� ...

in 1964 and 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 ...

from the

University of South Carolina Law School The University of South Carolina School of Law, also known as South Carolina Law School, is a law school, professional school within the University of South Carolina. The school of law was founded in 1867, and remains the only public and non-profi ...

in 1967. He served on active duty for two years, in active reserves, and the

South Carolina National Guard The South Carolina National Guard consists of the South Carolina Army National Guard and the South Carolina Air National Guardbr> American law specifically charges the National Guard with dual federal and state missions. In fact, the National Guard ...

for twenty-five years. He holds the retired rank of Brigadier General. He was a

law clerk A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person, generally someone who provides direct counsel and assistance to a lawyer or judge by researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court. Judicial clerks often play significant ...

to then chief judge,

Clement Haynsworth Clement Furman Haynsworth Jr. (October 30, 1912 – November 22, 1989) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. He was also an unsuccessful nominee for the United States Supreme Court in 1969 ...

, of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit from 1969 to 1970. He was a legal assistant to

United States Senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

Strom Thurmond James Strom Thurmond Sr. (December 5, 1902June 26, 2003) was an American politician who represented South Carolina in the United States Senate from 1954 to 2003. Prior to his 48 years as a senator, he served as the 103rd governor of South Caro ...

from 1970 to 1971. He was in private practice in Greenville, South Carolina from 1971 to 1978, also serving as the Solicitor (District Attorney) of the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, South Carolina from 1974 to 1981.

Federal judicial service

Wilkins was nominated by President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

on July 9, 1981, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge

Robert W. Hemphill Robert Witherspoon Hemphill (May 10, 1915 – December 25, 1983) was a United States representative from South Carolina and later was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina. Educatio ...

. He was confirmed by the

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 ...

on July 20, 1981, and received commission on July 22, 1981. He was Reagan's first appointment to the federal bench. His service terminated on July 10, 1986, due to his elevation to the Fourth Circuit. He served as Chair of the United States Sentencing Commission from 1985 to 1994. Wilkins was nominated by President Reagan on June 3, 1986, to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit vacated by Judge

Emory M. Sneeden Emory Marlin Sneeden (May 30, 1927 – September 24, 1987) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Education and career Sneeden was born in Wilmington, North Carolina. He graduated from Wa ...

. He was confirmed by the Senate on June 13, 1986, and received commission on June 16, 1986. He served as Chief Judge from 2003 to 2007. He 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 July 1, 2007. His service terminated on October 5, 2008, due to retirement.

Post judicial service

He presently leads Nexsen Pruet law firm's Appellate Advocacy, Corporate Compliance / Crisis Management, and White Collar Crime practices and is active with the firm's business litigation practice.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkins, William Walter 1942 births Living people Chairpersons of the United States Sentencing Commission Davidson College alumni Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit Judges of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina Members of the United States Sentencing Commission South Carolina Republicans United States Army generals United States court of appeals judges appointed by Ronald Reagan United States district court judges appointed by Ronald Reagan 20th-century American judges University of South Carolina alumni