Carolyn King | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Senior Judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit | |
| Assumed office December 31, 2013 | |
| Chief Judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit | |
| In office January 16, 1999 – January 30, 2006 | |
| Preceded by | Henry Anthony Politz |
| Succeeded by | Edith Jones |
| Judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit | |
| In office July 13, 1979 – December 31, 2013 | |
| Appointed by | Jimmy Carter |
| Preceded by | Seat established |
| Succeeded by | James C. Ho |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1938-01-30)January 30, 1938 (age 87) |
| Spouse | |
| Education | Smith College (BA) Yale University (LLB) |
Carolyn Dineen King (born January 30, 1938) is aSenior United States circuit judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Her chambers are inHouston,Texas.
Born inSyracuse,New York, King received aBachelor of Arts degree, summa cum laude, fromSmith College in 1959. She received aBachelor of Laws fromYale Law School in 1962. After theUnited States Attorney's office in Houston denied her a position as an Assistant United States Attorney—which she believes was because of her gender[1]—she joinedFulbright & Jaworski as a corporate and securities lawyer. She was in private practice of law inHouston,Texas from 1962 to 1979.[2]
King was nominated by PresidentJimmy Carter on April 30, 1979, to theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, to a new seat created by 92 Stat. 1629. She was confirmed by theUnited States Senate on July 12, 1979, and received her commission on July 13, 1979. She served as the first female chief judge from 1999 to 2006. She assumedsenior status on December 31, 2013.[2] She was nominated and served until January 1, 1988, under the name Carolyn Dineen Randall. In 2002, at the request of Chief JusticeWilliam Rehnquist, she became the first woman to chair the executive committee of theJudicial Conference of the United States.[2]
In 2007, King received theEdward J. Devitt Distinguished Service to Justice Award from theAmerican Judicature Society.[3]King is also a 1997 recipient of the Smith College Medal[4] and the American Bar Association's Margaret Brent Award.[5]In 2014, she was honored by the American College of Bankruptcy with its Distinguished Service award.[6]
King was elected to theAmerican Law Institute in 1985 and was elected to the ALI Council in 1991. She served as ALI's Treasurer from May 2010 to May 2013.[7]
King served under the name Carolyn Dineen Randall from 1979 to 1988. She married senior Fifth Circuit JudgeThomas Morrow Reavley in August 2004.[8]
King is widely considered to be a political and judicialmoderate.[9]
On December 18, 2019, King dissented when the Fifth Circuit declared the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate unconstitutional.[10]
| Legal offices | ||
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| New seat | Judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit 1979–2013 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chief Judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit 1999–2006 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
