Charles Clark (September 12, 1925 – March 6, 2011) was a

United States circuit judge In the United States, a federal judge is a judge who serves on a court established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. Often called "Article III judges", federal judges include the chief justice and associate justices of the U.S. Su ...

of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (in case citations, 5th Cir.) is one of the 13 United States courts of appeals. It has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: ...

. He is, as of 2019, the highest ranking judicial official from Mississippi since

Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II (September 17, 1825January 23, 1893) was a Confederate soldier, American politician, diplomat, and jurist. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he represented Mississippi in bot ...

served on the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

in 1893.

Early life and career

Clark was born in

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Mem ...

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

to Charles and Anita Clark and was the great-grandson of Mississippi Governor Charles Clark (1863–1865). After being graduated from

Cleveland High School (Cleveland, Mississippi) Cleveland High School was a public high school that served students in grades 912, located in Cleveland, Mississippi. After it and East Side High were ordered to consolidate, it was renamed Cleveland Central High school, and East Side High was ...

, he entered the

United States Naval Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2004, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called reservists, are categorized as being in either the S ...

as an

ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

in 1943 and left the Reserve after the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

three years later. He attended law school at the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (Epithet, byname Ole Miss) is a Public university, public research university in University, near Oxford, Mississippi, United States, with a University of Mississippi Medical Center, medical center in Jackson, Miss ...

, where he was a member of

Delta Psi Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta"), the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * Delta Air Lines, a major US carrier ...

fraternity and met his future wife, Emily. He began the

practice of law In its most general sense, the practice of law involves giving legal advice to clients, drafting legal documents for clients, and representing clients in legal negotiations and court proceedings such as lawsuits, and is applied to the profes ...

in 1946 in

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

and continued in private practice for five years, earning a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

from the

University of Mississippi School of Law The University of Mississippi School of Law, also known as Ole Miss Law, is an ABA-accredited law school located on the campus of the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Mississippi, United States. Established in 1854, the School of Law offers t ...

in 1948, then rejoined the Naval Reserve as a lieutenant as the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

heated up in 1951. He left the Naval Reserve the following year, and resumed his law practice in 1953. In 1962, Clark represented the University of Mississippi's Board of Trustees when

James Meredith James Howard Meredith (born June 25, 1933) is an American civil rights activist, writer, political adviser, and United States Air Force veteran who became, in 1962, the first African-American student admitted to the racially segregated Univers ...

sued for being rejected based on race. Clark argued that the University had no policy on race and Meredith's rejection was based on a lack of qualifications. The case was settled on appeal by the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in Meredith’s favor in September 1962, resulting in the

Ole Miss riot of 1962 The Ole Miss riot of 1962 (September 30 – October 1, 1962), also known as the Battle of Oxford, was a race riot that occurred at the University of Mississippi—commonly called Ole Miss—in Oxford, Mississippi, Oxford, Mississippi, as Racial ...

Federal judicial service

On October 7, 1969,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

nominated Clark to a seat on the

vacated by Judge Claude Feemster Clayton. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

only eight days later on October 15, 1969 and received his commission two days later. In 1973 and again in 1976, he was recommended to fill vacancies on the

and each time, he received the American Bar Association's highest qualification. Clark was Chief Judge of the Fifth Circuit from 1981 until his retirement from the court on January 15, 1992. He resided in Jackson, Mississippi with his wife Emily until his death on March 6, 2011. In addition to producing more than 2200 opinions, and presiding over the Fifth Circuit for more than ten years, Judge Clark was appointed by Chief Justice

Warren Burger Warren Earl Burger (September 17, 1907 – June 25, 1995) was an American attorney who served as the 15th chief justice of the United States from 1969 to 1986. Born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Burger graduated from the St. Paul College of Law i ...

and again by Chief Justice

William Rehnquist William Hubbs Rehnquist (October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American attorney who served as the 16th chief justice of the United States from 1986 until his death in 2005, having previously been an associate justice from 1972 to 1986. ...

to the

Judicial Conference of the United States The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial co ...

, the principal policymaking body for the federal courts. During his eleven years there, he served as chairman of the Budget Committee and then chairman of the Executive Committee.

Honors

Clark was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Laws from Mississippi College and was inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Law School of

Ole Miss OLE, Ole or Olé may refer to: * Olé, a cheering expression used in Spain * Ole (name), a male given name, includes a list of people named Ole * Overhead lines equipment, used to transmit electrical energy to trams, trolleybuses or trains Co ...

in the spring of 2009.

Notable clerks

Leslie H. Southwick Leslie Harburd Southwick (born February 10, 1950) is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and a former judge of the Mississippi Court of Appeals. Early life and education Born in Edinburg, T ...

, 1976–1977 *

Rodney A. Smolla Rodney A. Smolla, is an American author, First Amendment scholar and lawyer. Since 2022, he has served as the president of the Vermont Law and Graduate School, and was the 11th president of Furman University from 2010 to 2013. Education Smol ...

, 1978–1979 *

Rives Kistler Rives Kistler (born 1949) is an American attorney and judge in the state of Oregon. After college and law school on the East Coast, he moved to Oregon where he worked in private practice before joining the Oregon Department of Justice. Kistler th ...

, 1981-1982 * Michael B. Thornton, 1983-1984 * Charles R. Eskridge III, 1990-1991

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Charles 1925 births 2011 deaths Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Lawyers from Jackson, Mississippi United States court of appeals judges appointed by Richard Nixon United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy personnel of the Korean War United States Navy officers Lawyers from Memphis, Tennessee University of Mississippi alumni