Leslie H. Southwick
Encyclopedia
Leslie H. Southwick is a federal judge
on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
and a former judge of the Mississippi Court of Appeals
. He is a Lieutenant Colonel in the Mississippi National Guard and was deployed to Iraq
in 2004-2005 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
in 1972 and received his juris doctor
from The University of Texas School of Law in 1975. Following law school, Southwick clerked for the Presiding Judge, John F. Onion, Jr., of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
from 1975–1976, and then, in Mississippi, for Judge Charles Clark
on the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals from 1976-1977.
Southwick was in private practice as an attorney in Jackson, Mississippi
with the firm Brunini, Grantham, Grower & Hewes from 1977-1989, serving as a partner from 1983-1989. In 1989, Southwick entered government service as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the United States Department of Justice Civil Division
. There he supervised the one hundred and twenty-five lawyers of the Federal Programs Branch, which defends suits brought against the United States. He also supervised the Office of Consumer Litigation, a twenty-five lawyer division charged with civil and criminal enforcement of federal consumer laws.
Southwick was elected one of the first ten judges of the Mississippi Court of Appeals in 1994. He remained on the court until the end of 2006 when, with a nomination to a lifetime position in the federal judiciary pending, he did not run for re-election. Southwick was on a leave of absence from the court from August 2004 to January 2006. In 2005, he served in Iraq
as a Judge Advocate General
with the 155th Brigade Combat Team
of the Mississippi Army National Guard.
Southwick also taught law as an adjunct professor at the Mississippi College School of Law
and was a member of the American Inns of Court
, Charles Clark
Chapter.
to fill a seat on the Fifth Circuit vacated by recess-appointed
Judge Charles W. Pickering
, who retired at the end of 2004 because he could not overcome a filibuster launched against him by Senate Democrats. Previously, Bush had nominated Mississippi attorney Michael B. Wallace in the 109th Congress to replace Pickering, but his nomination also became stalled due to fierce opposition from Senate Democrats. Upon the Democratic takeover of Congress in the November 2006 elections, Wallace asked President Bush not to re-nominate him in the 110th Congress.
Finding itself without a nominee to a judgeship that had already sat vacant for two years, the White House turned to Southwick, then a nominee to a vacancy on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi
. Bush had nominated him on June 9, 2006 to fill a vacancy on that court left by retired judge William H. Barbour, Jr.. Southwick had a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on September 19, 2006 and was reported favorably to the floor of the Senate by the Committee on September 29, 2006. However, Southwick, like many other judicial nominees, failed to receive a vote by the full Senate before the 109th Congress adjourned for good on December 9, 2006. Pursuant to Senate rules of procedure, his nomination, along with many others, was returned to the President.
Southwick's successive federal nominations, within seven months of each other, though unusual, are not unheard of. The Bush White House did the same thing earlier with nominee Jerome A. Holmes, who was eventually confirmed to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
.
The Senate Judiciary Committee of the 110th Congress held a hearing on Southwick's nomination to the Fifth Circuit on May 10, 2007. The hearing was chaired by Rhode Island
Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse
. Just prior to the hearing, controversy arose over the nomination.
Southwick's nomination was opposed by the People for the American Way
, the Human Rights Campaign
, and the Congressional Black Caucus
, who alleged that Southwick was racially intolerant and homophobic. Two cases that Southwick participated in as a state judge formed the primary basis for the groups' charges.
In the first case, Richmond v. Mississippi Department of Human Services, Southwick joined the majority opinion upholding the decision of the Mississippi Employee Appeals Board to reinstate a white state employee (Richmond) who was fired for a single incident of referring to a black co-worker as a “good ole nigger” outside of the co-worker's presence. When the black co-worker was informed of Richmond's comment, Richmond immediately apologized, and her apology apparently was accepted. The Appeals Board's decision to reinstate Richmond was based, in part, on a hearing officer’s opinion that the slur was only “somewhat derogatory” and “was in effect calling the individual a ‘teacher’s pet.’”. Bound by law to affirm a decision of the Appeals Board supported by substantial factual evidence, the court held it had no authority to set aside the findings in this case, even though Richmond's remark was "undoubtedly ill-advised and indicative of a rather remarkable insensitivity.".
On writ of certiorari, the Mississippi Supreme Court agreed that "the unique circumstances of this case do not warrant imposition of the ultimate penalty of dismissal." However, the court found the record was insufficient to uphold the Employee Appeals Board's decision that Richmond effectively receive no penalty whatsoever. It decided to remand the case "in order for the board to impose an appropriate penalty less than dismissal, or to make detailed findings as to why no penalty should be imposed."
The second case often cited by Southwick's critics is S.B. v. L.W., an 8-2 decision upholding a chancellor's decision to grant sole custody of an eight year old girl to her father, in part because the mother was a lesbian who had lived with several different partners during the child's life. Southwick joined the majority opinion as well as a concurrence written by Judge Payne which states, in part:
After intense Democratic opposition, Southwick was reported out of Committee by a 10-9 vote on August 2, 2007 when Democratic California
Senator Dianne Feinstein
voted with the Committee's nine Republicans to send Southwick to the full Senate with a favorable report. Southwick was confirmed by a vote of 59-38 on October 24, 2007. Southwick's confirmation came almost ten months after his nomination to the Fifth Circuit and over a year after he was first nominated to a federal judgeship. Southwick was the fifth judge nominated by Bush to the Fifth Circuit and confirmed by the United States Senate
.
Southwick was sworn in as judge of the Fifth Circuit on October 30, 2007. He maintains chambers in Jackson, Mississippi
.
His first published opinion for the Fifth Circuit was Anthony v. United States, which was released on March 4, 2008. Southwick wrote for a unanimous three judge panel on an issue involving the valuation of private annuities for estate tax purposes. His first published dissent was in Louisiana ex rel. Caldwell v. Allstate Insurance
Co., 536 F.3d 418 (5th Cir. 2008) in which Southwick dissented from the assumption of federal jurisdiction under the Class Action Fairness Act.
in 2004-2005 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
United States federal judge
In the United States, the title of federal judge usually means a judge appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate in accordance with Article II of the United States Constitution....
on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* Eastern District of Louisiana* Middle District of Louisiana...
and a former judge of the Mississippi Court of Appeals
Mississippi Court of Appeals
The Mississippi Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the state of Mississippi. The court was created by the Mississippi Legislature to relieve a backlog of cases in the Supreme Court of Mississippi, and commenced operations in 1995....
. He is a Lieutenant Colonel in the Mississippi National Guard and was deployed to Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
in 2004-2005 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Background
Born in Texas, Southwick graduated cum laude from Rice UniversityRice University
William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University or Rice, is a private research university located on a heavily wooded campus in Houston, Texas, United States...
in 1972 and received his 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...
from The University of Texas School of Law in 1975. Following law school, Southwick clerked for the Presiding Judge, John F. Onion, Jr., of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is the court of last resort for all criminal matters in the State of Texas, United States. The Court, which is based in the Supreme Court Building in Downtown Austin, is composed of a Presiding Judge and eight judges....
from 1975–1976, and then, in Mississippi, for Judge Charles Clark
Charles Clark (judge)
Charles Clark was a federal judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit from Mississippi. He is, as of 2011, the highest ranking judicial official from Mississippi since L.Q.C. Lamar served on the United States Supreme Court in 1893.Clark was born in Memphis, Tennessee to...
on the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals from 1976-1977.
Southwick was in private practice as an attorney in Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
with the firm Brunini, Grantham, Grower & Hewes from 1977-1989, serving as a partner from 1983-1989. In 1989, Southwick entered government service as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the United States Department of Justice Civil Division
United States Department of Justice Civil Division
The United States Department of Justice Civil Division represents the United States, its departments and agencies, Members of Congress, Cabinet officers and other Federal employees...
. There he supervised the one hundred and twenty-five lawyers of the Federal Programs Branch, which defends suits brought against the United States. He also supervised the Office of Consumer Litigation, a twenty-five lawyer division charged with civil and criminal enforcement of federal consumer laws.
Southwick was elected one of the first ten judges of the Mississippi Court of Appeals in 1994. He remained on the court until the end of 2006 when, with a nomination to a lifetime position in the federal judiciary pending, he did not run for re-election. Southwick was on a leave of absence from the court from August 2004 to January 2006. In 2005, he served in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
as a Judge Advocate General
Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Army
The Judge Advocate General's Corps of the United States Army is composed of Army officers who are also lawyers and who provide legal services to the Army at all levels of command. The Judge Advocate General's Legal Service includes judge advocates, warrant officers, paralegal noncommissioned...
with the 155th Brigade Combat Team
155th Brigade Combat Team (United States)
The 155th Heavy Brigade Combat Team is a Brigade Combat Team of the Mississippi Army National Guard.-History:The 155th Heavy Brigade Combat Team takes its name from the 155th Infantry Regiment which dates back to 1798....
of the Mississippi Army National Guard.
Southwick also taught law as an adjunct professor at the Mississippi College School of Law
Mississippi College School of Law
The Mississippi College School of Law is located in downtown Jackson, Mississippi. The law school started out as the Jackson School of Law in 1930, but was acquired by Mississippi College in 1975. The main campus of Mississippi College is located in Clinton, Mississippi.In December 2005, the school...
and was a member of the American Inns of Court
American Inns of Court Foundation
American Inns of Court are designed to improve the skills, professionalism and ethics of the bench and bar. An American Inn of Court is an amalgam of judges, lawyers, and in some cases, law professors and law students...
, Charles Clark
Charles Clark
Charles Clark may refer to:* Charles Clark , Governor of Mississippi during the American Civil War* Charles Clark , British publisher and expert on copyright...
Chapter.
Fifth Circuit nomination and confirmation
Southwick was nominated on January 9, 2007 by President George W. BushGeorge W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
to fill a seat on the Fifth Circuit vacated by recess-appointed
Recess appointment
A recess appointment is the appointment, by the President of the United States, of a senior federal official while the U.S. Senate is in recess. The U.S. Constitution requires that the most senior federal officers must be confirmed by the Senate before assuming office, but while the Senate is in...
Judge Charles W. Pickering
Charles W. Pickering
Charles Willis Pickering, Sr. is a retired federal judge who served on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.- Background :...
, who retired at the end of 2004 because he could not overcome a filibuster launched against him by Senate Democrats. Previously, Bush had nominated Mississippi attorney Michael B. Wallace in the 109th Congress to replace Pickering, but his nomination also became stalled due to fierce opposition from Senate Democrats. Upon the Democratic takeover of Congress in the November 2006 elections, Wallace asked President Bush not to re-nominate him in the 110th Congress.
Finding itself without a nominee to a judgeship that had already sat vacant for two years, the White House turned to Southwick, then a nominee to a vacancy on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi
United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi
The United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi is a federal court in the Fifth Circuit with facilities in Gulfport, Hattiesburg, Vicksburg, and Jackson....
. Bush had nominated him on June 9, 2006 to fill a vacancy on that court left by retired judge William H. Barbour, Jr.. Southwick had a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on September 19, 2006 and was reported favorably to the floor of the Senate by the Committee on September 29, 2006. However, Southwick, like many other judicial nominees, failed to receive a vote by the full Senate before the 109th Congress adjourned for good on December 9, 2006. Pursuant to Senate rules of procedure, his nomination, along with many others, was returned to the President.
Southwick's successive federal nominations, within seven months of each other, though unusual, are not unheard of. The Bush White House did the same thing earlier with nominee Jerome A. Holmes, who was eventually confirmed to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Colorado* District of Kansas...
.
The Senate Judiciary Committee of the 110th Congress held a hearing on Southwick's nomination to the Fifth Circuit on May 10, 2007. The hearing was chaired by Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse
Sheldon Whitehouse
Sheldon Whitehouse is the junior U.S. Senator from Rhode Island, serving since 2007. He is a member of the Democratic Party...
. Just prior to the hearing, controversy arose over the nomination.
Southwick's nomination was opposed by the People for the American Way
People For the American Way
People For the American Way is a progressive advocacy group in the United States. Under U.S. tax code, People For the American Way is organized as a tax-exempt 501 non-profit organization.-Purpose:...
, the Human Rights Campaign
Human Rights Campaign
The Human Rights Campaign is the United States' largest LGBT advocacy group and lobbying organization; according to the HRC, it has more than one million members and supporters...
, and the Congressional Black Caucus
Congressional Black Caucus
The Congressional Black Caucus is an organization representing the black members of the United States Congress. Membership is exclusive to blacks, and its chair in the 112th Congress is Representative Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri.-Aims:...
, who alleged that Southwick was racially intolerant and homophobic. Two cases that Southwick participated in as a state judge formed the primary basis for the groups' charges.
In the first case, Richmond v. Mississippi Department of Human Services, Southwick joined the majority opinion upholding the decision of the Mississippi Employee Appeals Board to reinstate a white state employee (Richmond) who was fired for a single incident of referring to a black co-worker as a “good ole nigger” outside of the co-worker's presence. When the black co-worker was informed of Richmond's comment, Richmond immediately apologized, and her apology apparently was accepted. The Appeals Board's decision to reinstate Richmond was based, in part, on a hearing officer’s opinion that the slur was only “somewhat derogatory” and “was in effect calling the individual a ‘teacher’s pet.’”. Bound by law to affirm a decision of the Appeals Board supported by substantial factual evidence, the court held it had no authority to set aside the findings in this case, even though Richmond's remark was "undoubtedly ill-advised and indicative of a rather remarkable insensitivity.".
On writ of certiorari, the Mississippi Supreme Court agreed that "the unique circumstances of this case do not warrant imposition of the ultimate penalty of dismissal." However, the court found the record was insufficient to uphold the Employee Appeals Board's decision that Richmond effectively receive no penalty whatsoever. It decided to remand the case "in order for the board to impose an appropriate penalty less than dismissal, or to make detailed findings as to why no penalty should be imposed."
The second case often cited by Southwick's critics is S.B. v. L.W., an 8-2 decision upholding a chancellor's decision to grant sole custody of an eight year old girl to her father, in part because the mother was a lesbian who had lived with several different partners during the child's life. Southwick joined the majority opinion as well as a concurrence written by Judge Payne which states, in part:
¶ 33. I do recognize that any adult may choose any activity in which to engage; however, I also am aware that such person is not thereby relieved of the consequences of his or her choice. It is a basic tenet that an individual's exercise of freedom will not also provide an escape of the consequences flowing from the free exercise of such a choice. As with the present situation, the mother may view her decision to participate in a homosexual relationship as an exertion of her perceived right to do so. However, her choice is of significant consequence, as described before in the discussion of our State's policies, in that her rights to custody of her child may be significantly impacted.
After intense Democratic opposition, Southwick was reported out of Committee by a 10-9 vote on August 2, 2007 when Democratic California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
Senator Dianne Feinstein
Dianne Feinstein
Dianne Goldman Berman Feinstein is the senior U.S. Senator from California. A member of the Democratic Party, she has served in the Senate since 1992. She also served as 38th Mayor of San Francisco from 1978 to 1988....
voted with the Committee's nine Republicans to send Southwick to the full Senate with a favorable report. Southwick was confirmed by a vote of 59-38 on October 24, 2007. Southwick's confirmation came almost ten months after his nomination to the Fifth Circuit and over a year after he was first nominated to a federal judgeship. Southwick was the fifth judge nominated by Bush to the Fifth Circuit and confirmed by the United States Senate
United States Senate
The 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...
.
Southwick was sworn in as judge of the Fifth Circuit on October 30, 2007. He maintains chambers in Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
.
His first published opinion for the Fifth Circuit was Anthony v. United States, which was released on March 4, 2008. Southwick wrote for a unanimous three judge panel on an issue involving the valuation of private annuities for estate tax purposes. His first published dissent was in Louisiana ex rel. Caldwell v. Allstate Insurance
Allstate
The Allstate Corporation is the second-largest personal lines insurer in the United States and the largest that is publicly held. The company also has personal lines insurance operations in Canada. Allstate was founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co., and was spun off in 1993...
Co., 536 F.3d 418 (5th Cir. 2008) in which Southwick dissented from the assumption of federal jurisdiction under the Class Action Fairness Act.
Personal
Southwick is married and has two children. He is Roman Catholic. He is a member of the Mississippi National Guard where he has attained the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He was deployed to IraqIraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
in 2004-2005 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Works by Southwick
- Presidential Also-Rans & Running Mates, 1788-1996. Published by McFarland & Co., Jefferson, N.C., 1998 (2d edition)
Sources
- White House Profile
- U.S. Department of Justice Nominee Resume
- Southwick Bio at the Mississippi Supreme Court
- Goodman, Julie, "Potential judicial nominees studied," Clarion-Ledger, January 2, 2007
- Kanengiser, Andy, "Bush selection for federal appeals court post under fire," Clarion-Ledger, January 10, 2007.
- Sayre, Katherine, "Bush nominates 2 in Mississippi for judgeships," The Sun HeraldThe Sun HeraldThe Sun Herald is a U.S. newspaper based in Biloxi, Mississippi, that serves readers along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. It is owned by The McClatchy Company, one of the largest newspaper publishers in the United States....
, January 10, 2007. - Radelat, Ana, "Senate Dems win delay of Southwick confirmation vote," Clarion-Ledger, May 25, 2007.
- "An Unacceptable Nominee," The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, June 5, 2007. - Stuart Taylor, Jr., “Shortsighted on Judges,” National JournalNational JournalNational Journal is a nonpartisan American weekly magazine that reports on the current political environment and emerging political and policy trends. National Journal was first published in 1969. Times Mirror owned the magazine from 1986 to 1997, when it was purchased by David G. Bradley...
, July 28, 2007 - Bolton, Alexander, "Feinstein's flip sends Southwick to the floor," The HillThe Hill (newspaper)The Hill, a subsidiary of News Communications Inc., is a newspaper published in Washington, D.C. since 1994.Its first editor was Martin Tolchin, a veteran correspondent in the Washington bureau of The New York Times....
, August 3, 2007. - "Southwick: Judicial principle worth fighting for," Clarion-Ledger, August 3, 2007.
- "Qualified to Serve," The Washington PostThe Washington PostThe Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, August 18, 2007. - Radelat, Ana, "Southwick allowed more time to garner support," Clarion-Ledger, October 7, 2007.
- Kellman, Laurie, "Southwick Wins Confirmation," Associated PressAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
, October 24, 2007. - Stout, David, "Judge Opposed By Democrats Confirmed," The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, October 24, 2007 - Recio, Maria, "Southwick approved for Fifth Circuit seat," The Sun HeraldThe Sun HeraldThe Sun Herald is a U.S. newspaper based in Biloxi, Mississippi, that serves readers along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. It is owned by The McClatchy Company, one of the largest newspaper publishers in the United States....
, October 25, 2007. - "Southwick: Judge judged by region's history," Clarion-Ledger, October 25, 2007.