William J. Crain

William Crain
Associate Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court
Incumbent
Assumed office
December 11, 2019
Preceded byGreg G. Guidry
Personal details
Born1961 or 1962 (age 62–63)
Political partyRepublican[1]
EducationLouisiana State University (BA, JD)

William J. Crain (born 1961 or 1962) is an American lawyer who has served an associate justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court since 2019.[1]

Education

Crain is a 1979 graduate of Bogalusa High School. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science from Louisiana State University in 1983. He received his Juris Doctor from Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center in 1986.[2][3]

Career

Crain served for 22 years as a partner and lawyer at the Jones Fussell Law Firm in Covington, where he litigated cases in both state and federal courts.[2][1]

State judicial service

He was a Judge of the Twenty-Second Judicial District Court from 2009 to 2013. From 2013 to 2019, he was a Judge of the Louisiana First Circuit Court of Appeal.[2] He was sworn in as an appellate judge on December 14, 2012.[4]

Louisiana Supreme Court service

On June 26, 2019, Crain announced his intention to run for a seat on the Louisiana Supreme Court vacated by Greg G. Guidry.[1] Crain headed to a runoff against Hans Liljeberg on November 16, 2019.[5][6] On November 16, 2019, he went on to win the election, 57% to 42%.[7][8] Crain was sworn in on December 11, 2019, by his father Judge Hillary Crain.[9]

Memberships and affiliations

Crain is a member of the 2011 inaugural class of the Louisiana Judicial Leadership Institute.[10]

Personal life

He has been married to his wife, Cheri Hackett Crain for 35 years. They have four children: William, Michael, Matthew, and Elizabeth. He is a parishioner at St. Timothy United Methodist Church.[2]

Electoral history

Associate Justice—Supreme Court, 1st Supreme Court District (October 12, 2019)[11]
Year Republican Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct
2019 Will Crain 73,534 38.61% Richard Ducote 21,810 11.45% Hans Liljeberg 61,859 32.48% Scott Schlegel 33,242 17.45%
Associate Justice—Supreme Court, 1st Supreme Court District (November 11, 2019)[12]
Year Republican Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct
2019 Will Crain 127,211 57.28% Hans Liljeberg 94,875 42.72%

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wagner, Rose (June 26, 2019). "Appellate Judge Will Crain announces run for vacated seat on Louisiana Supreme Court". NOLA.com. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d "ABOUT JUDGE CRAIN – Judge Will Crain". Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  3. ^ "Hon. William J. Crain Judge Profile on Martindale.com". www.martindale.com. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  4. ^ Nolan, Heather (December 14, 2012). "Judge William Crain to be sworn in as appellate court judge Friday". NOLA.com. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  5. ^ Kidd, Karen (October 15, 2019). "Crain, Liljeberg head to November runoff for vacant Louisiana Supreme Court District 1 seat". Louisiana Record. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  6. ^ Varney, James (November 14, 2019). "Louisiana voters to pick next state Supreme Court judge". The Washington Times. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  7. ^ "Louisiana Secretary of State - Live Election Results". voterportal.sos.la.gov. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  8. ^ Simerman, John (November 16, 2019). "Will Crain defeats Hans Liljeberg in runoff for Louisiana Supreme Court seat". NOLA.com. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  9. ^ "Crain Becomes 1st Supreme Court Justice From Washington Parish". www.era-leader.com. December 13, 2019. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  10. ^ "Biography- Judge William J. Crain" (PDF). August 20, 2018. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  11. ^ "Louisiana Secretary of State - Election Results". voterportal.sos.la.gov. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  12. ^ "Louisiana Secretary of State - Election Results". voterportal.sos.la.gov. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
Legal offices
Preceded by Associate Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court
2019–present 		Incumbent