The Shadow
Covington attorney William T. (Bill) Wilson has been appointed by Chief Justice Donald Lemons of the Supreme Court of Virginia to serve on the Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee (JEAC).
The JEAC was established to render advisory opinions concerning the compliance of proposed future conduct with the Canons of Judicial Conduct.
“A request for an advisory opinion may be made by any judge or any person whose conduct is subject to the Canons of Judicial Conduct. The Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission and the Supreme Court of Virginia may, in their discretion, consider compliance with an advisory opinion by the requesting individual to be a good faith effort to comply with the Canons of Judicial Conduct provided that compliance with an opinion issued to one judge shall not be considered evidence of good faith of another judge unless the underlying facts are substantially the same.”
The committee is made up of 11 members, all of whom shall be appointed by the Chief Justice. Six members shall be active or retired judges; four members shall be attorneys; and one member shall be a non-lawyer resident of Virginia.
All members of the committee serve at the pleasure of the Chief Justice. Their terms are three years and they may be reappointed but may not serve more than two three-year terms.
Judges who are concerned about the propriety of their own future conduct may request an advisory opinion from the committee but must include a statement of all facts and circumstances pertaining to the conduct for which an opinion is being sought.
Wilson resides in Alleghany County and practices mainly plaintiff’s personal injury law at the Law Office of William T. Wilson, 228 N. Maple Avenue in Covington. He is married to Langhorne Clarke Wilson, formerly of Salem, and they have one daughter, Taylor Wilson Jones, who lives with her husband Ben Jones and their two children, Virginia Langhorne Jones, age 2 and Mary Hardin Jones, age 10 months, in Richmond.
Wilson is a former member of the Virginia House of Delegates, having served from 1974 through 1989, representing Alleghany County, Botetourt County, part of Craig County and the cities of Covington and Clifton Forge.
He was named a “Leader in the Law” by Virginia Lawyers Weekly and in 2015 he was given a “Champion of Justice” award by the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). For several years in a row he was named a “Super Lawyer” by the Virginia Lawyers Weekly.
Wilson’s secretary and legal assistant is Kathy Carson of Covington, whose husband is Lance Carson.
Commenting on the appointment, Wilson said: “It is an honor to be asked to serve on the committee, especially when the appointment comes from the Chief Justice of the Virginia Supreme Court. At this point in my life, I thought that I would be slowing down, but things seem to be going faster. Even so, I like the pace.”
