William Fleming (judge)

William Fleming
File:Judge William Fleming.jpg
3rd Chief Justice of Virginia
In office July 30, 1809 – February 15, 1824
Preceded by	Peter Lyons
Succeeded by	Francis T. Brooke
Justice of the Virginia Supreme Court
In office June 20, 1789 – February 15, 1824
Appointed by	Beverley Randolph
Personal details
Born	July 6, 1736 Cumberland County, Virginia
Died	Chesterfield County, Virginia
Alma mater	College of William and Mary
Profession	Lawyer, judge, politician

Judge William Fleming (July 6, 1736 – February 15, 1824) was an American lawyer, jurist and political figure from Cumberland County, Virginia. He is often confused with his contemporary, Colonel William Fleming, who briefly served as Governor of Virginia during the American Revolution.

Biography

Judge Fleming was educated at The College of William & Mary, after which he started practicing law before the county courts. In 1772, he became a member of the House of Burgesses, representing Cumberland County as his father John Fleming had done before him, and remained in this position until that body was terminated by the revolution. When the new state government of Virginia was instituted, he went back to Williamsburg as a member of the first House of Delegates.

On December 10, 1778, he was elected a member of Continental Congress, but it was April 1779 before he reported there. In September, he took a leave of absence and returned to Virginia and the House of Delegates. In 1781, he was elected and began serving as a judge of the Virginia general court. Governor Beverley Randolph subsequently appointed Fleming to the Supreme Court of Appeals. When the court was reorganized in 1788, he was one of the five judges chosen for the new court. He became President and Chief Justice of the Court in 1809, a position he held until his death on February 15, 1824.

External links

• William Fleming at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress