Kristi Haskins Johnson

Kristi Haskins Johnson (born 1980)[1] is a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi and former Solicitor General of Mississippi.

Kristi Haskins Johnson
Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi
Incumbent
Assumed office December 1, 2020
Appointed by	Donald Trump
Preceded by	Keith Starrett
Solicitor General of Mississippi
In office February 24, 2020 – December 1, 2020
Attorney General	Lynn Fitch
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	vacant
Personal details
Born	Kristi Erin Haskins[1] 1980 (age 40–41) Oxford, Mississippi, U.S.
Education	University of Mississippi (BA) Mississippi College School of Law (JD)

Education

Johnson earned her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Mississippi in 2003 and her Juris Doctor, summa cum laude, from the Mississippi College School of Law in 2008, where she served as an editor of the Mississippi College Law Review.[2][3]

Legal career

Upon graduation from law school, Johnson served as a law clerk to Judge Sharion Aycock of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi and to Judge Leslie Southwick of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. She served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi and was later in private practice at Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart.[2] On February 24, 2020, Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch appointed Johnson the first Solicitor General of Mississippi.[4] She left her position as Solicitor General upon being appointed a federal judge. Haskins has served as an adjunct professor at Mississippi College.[5]

Federal judicial service

On March 30, 2020, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Johnson to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi. On May 4, 2020, her nomination was sent to the Senate. President Trump nominated Johnson to the seat vacated by Judge Keith Starrett, who took senior status on April 30, 2019.[6] On September 9, 2020, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[7] On October 22, 2020, the Judiciary Committee reported her nomination by a 12–0 vote.[8] On November 17, 2020, her nomination was confirmed in the United States Senate by a vote of 53–43.[9] She received her judicial commission on December 1, 2020. Haskins is the first woman to serve as a federal judge in the Southern District of Mississippi.[5]

Memberships

Johnson is a member of the Federalist Society, the Federal Bar Association, and the Charles L. Clark Chapter of the American Inns of Court.[4]

References

1. United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees: Kristi Johnson
2. "President Donald J. Trump Announces Judicial Nominees" White House, March 30, 2020 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
3. "Kristi Haskins Johnson Lawyer Profile on Martindale.com". www.martindale.com. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
4. "Attorney General Fitch Appoints Mississippi's First Solicitor General". Mississippi Politics and News – Y'all Politics. February 24, 2020. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
5. "1st woman confirmed as US judge for southern Mississippi". The Clarion-Ledger. Associated Press. November 17, 2020. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
6. "Thirty Nominations and One Withdrawal Sent to the Senate", White House, May 4, 2020
7. United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Nominations for September 9, 2020
8. Results of Executive Business Meeting – October 22, 2020, Senate Judiciary Committee
9. "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Kristi Haskins Johnson, of Mississippi, to be U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Mississippi)" United States Senate, November 17, 2020

External links

• Kristi Haskins Johnson at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.