Another W&L Alum Named to Bankruptcy Court
Washington and Lee continues to dominate the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Virginia.
Roanoke lawyer Paul Black, of the Class of 1982, has been appointed a U.S. bankruptcy court judge by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Paul succeeds William F. Stone Jr., ’68, ’70L. Bankruptcy judges serve 14-year terms, and Bill was appointed in 1999.
But the court will still be two-thirds W&L since Paul will be joining Rebecca Connelly, a 1988 law school alumna who became the first woman to serve as a bankruptcy judge in the district. She was appointed last year.
Paul is a member of the Roanoke firm of Spilman, Thomas & Battle. He has specialized in litigation, banking and finance, and bankruptcy. A graduate of T.C. Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond, he was a law clerk for the Hon. Black N. Shelley of the bankruptcy court for Virginia’s Eastern District prior to entering private practice.
The Western District stretches from Winchester to Lynchburg and to the state’s western tip. Paul is expected to take the bench by the end of the year.
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