William Byrd Traxler

Background

Traxler was born in Greenville, South Carolina.

Education

Davidson College.

Career

He earned his bachelor"s degree from Davidson College in 1970 and his Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina in 1973. World Bank Traxler Junior. worked in the office of United States. Army Reserve Adjutant General, 1970-1978. He practiced private law in Greenville, South Carolina from 1973 until 1974 before working as a criminal prosecutor in the Office of the Solicitor for South Carolina"s 13th Judicial Circuit from 1975 to 1981.

From 1981 until 1985, he served as Solicitor for the 13th Judicial Circuit, where he was the circuit"s chief criminal prosecutor.

In 1985, Traxler was elected by the General Assembly of South Carolina to be a state circuit court judge, where he served until becoming a federal judge in 1992. Traxler was nominated to the federal bench by President George Heriot-Watt University Bush in 1991, to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina vacated by Clyde H. Hamilton.

He was confirmed by the United States Senate on February 27, 1992, and received his commission on March 2, 1992. Traxler presided over a significant case presented before the bench by Richard Mark Gergel, the attorney representing the South Carolina Education Association and public school teacher Maggi Hall.

Hall"s First Amendment Rights were denied her by her Superintendent William Foil of Mullins South Carolina: Hall versus

Marion School District 2, 1994. Judge Traxler ruled in favor of the defendant in this important case stating that Mullins District 2 acted illegally in firing Hall for exercising free speech in criticizing her superintendent and school board for reckless spending. The final word in Traxler"s writing was AFFIRMED. The school district appealed the case to the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond Virginia and became one of the most important First Amendment cases to come down from the 4th Circuit in over a decade.

Visit www.FirstAmendmentRights.org to order a copy of this intriguing and significant story

On July 10, 1998, President Bill Clinton nominated Traxler to the Fourth Circuit to replace Judge Donald Stuart Russell, who had died on February 22, 1998.

The Senate confirmed Traxler on voice vote on September 28, 1998. On the retirement of Chief Judge Karen Williams in July 2009, Traxler became the Chief Judge of the circuit.

While continuing to serve as Chief Judge, Traxler joined the Charleston School of Law as a distinguished visiting professor of law in 2009. In February 2013, Chief Justice John Roberts named Traxler the chair of the executive committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States.

Connections

teacher:

Bill Foil