Steve Dillard

Stephen Louis A. Dillard (born November 13, 1969 in Nashville, Tennessee) is an appellate court judge and lecturer. In 2010, Judge Dillard was appointed to fill a vacant judgeship on the Georgia Court of Appeals. In 2012, he was elected to a full six-year term, which runs through the end of 2018.

Education and legal/judicial career

Dillard graduated from Samford University and the [[Mississippi College School of Law]] (cum laude). In 1996, he was admitted to practice in Georgia, and he is an active member of the State Bar of Georgia. Dillard clerked for Judge Daniel Anthony Manion of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Dillard practiced appellate law with the Macon, Georgia law firm of James, Bates, Pope & Spivey LLP until receiving his judgeship appointment in 2010. He also lives in Macon with his wife, the former Krista McDaniel and their three children.

On June 1, 2009, Steve Dillard was nominated by Georgia State Senator [[Cecil Staton]] (R) to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court of Georgia, and, on July 1, 2009, Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue's Office of Communications announced that the Georgia Judicial Nominating Commission had recommended Dillard as one of nine individuals to fill that vacancy. But in August 2009, Governor Perdue appointed Dillard instead to the Judicial Nominating Commission.

In October 2010, Governor Perdue appointed Dillard to fill one of two vacancies on the Georgia Court of Appeals. Dillard's judicial appointment ran from November 1, 2010 through January 1, 2013.

On July 31, 2012, Judge Dillard was elected by his fellow Georgians to serve a full six-year term on the Court (2013-2018). On July 1, 2015, Dillard was elected by his colleagues to serve as the Court’s Vice Chief.

Since joining the Court of Appeals, Judge Dillard has spoken to numerous organizations and participated in countless seminars on a wide variety of legal topics.

In 2016, Judge Dillard was appointed as the Co-Chairperson of the Georgia Judicial Council's Strategic Plan Standing Committee, and as a member of the Council's Standing Committee on Technology.

In 2015, Judge Dillard was appointed by Governor Nathan Deal to the [[Georgia Appellate Jurisdiction Review Commission]]. He was also appointed that year to serve on the Georgia Judicial Council, and as the Chairperson of the Council's Court Reporting Matters Committee.

In 2014, Judge Dillard was named the "State Judge of the Year" by his alma mater, the Mississippi College School of Law, for outstanding judicial service and also received the "Fastcase 50" award, which honors leaders in the world of law, scholarship, and legal technology.

In 2013, Judge Dillard was awarded the Distinguished Judicial Service Award by the Young Lawyers Division of the State Bar of Georgia, recognizing his outstanding service on the bench and commitment to improving the practice of law.

In 2012, Judge Dillard was appointed to the Code of Judicial Conduct Review Committee, and he also began serving as the Special Consultant to the Georgia

High School Mock Trial Committee.

Politics and writing

Dillard is a former member of the Republican Party, and was a delegate for Georgia at the 2008 Republican National Convention. He belongs to the conservative legal organization, The Federalist Society. Also, he has lectured at several law schools on behalf of the Federalist Society, including the University of Notre Dame and Washington and Lee University.

In 2010, Campaigns & Election's Politics Magazine named Dillard as one of the top 50 Republican Infuencers in Georgia.

Judge Dillard is no longer a member of any political party.

2008 Presidential election work

Dillard was a legal and political advisor to the unsuccessful presidential campaign of Governor of Arkansas Mike Huckabee before finally serving on a steering committee for Senator John McCain during the 2008 Presidential election.

Published work

• Five essays in the Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America, (M.E. Sharpe, 2005);
• Griffin Bell and Antonin Scalia biographies in Great American Judges, (ABC-CLIO (2003)); and
• Kenneth Starr and Joseph Story biographies in Great American Lawyers, (ABC-CLIO (2001)).