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W&L Alum Assumes Roanoke Judgeship

David Carson, a 1988 graduate of the Washington and Lee School of Law, took the bench in Roanoke this week as a judge on the 23rd District Court. He was appointed by the Virginia General Assembly last April.

According to a story in the RoanokeStar.com, David will be involved with three “courts-within-the-court” — Juvenile and Domestic Relations, the General District Court and the Circuit Court.

In order to accept the judgeship, David had to step down as chair of the Roanoke City School Board, a post he had held since 2006. His eight years on the board, including seven as chair, were challenging. A profile in the Roanoke Times last month cited the slowing dropout rate and improvements in on-time graduate rates as notable achievements in recent years. David wrote about his experience with the school board in this op-ed that appeared in the Roanoke Times.

A partner with the Roanoke firm Johnson Ayers & Matthews, David clerked for U.S. District Court Judge Jackson L. Kiser after his graduation from W&L. His areas of practice included alternative dispute resolution, civil litigation, corporate and commercial insurance, personal injury and professional liability. He is listed in Virginia Super Lawyers, Civil Litigation Defense and The Best Lawyers in America.

In his new role, David will preside over trials in Roanoke City, Roanoke County and the City of Salem.

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