William Leigh (judge)

Judge William Leigh
Court of Appeals of Virginia
Appointed by	Virginia General Assembly
Personal details
Born	May 1783
Died	(1871-07-19)July 19, 1871
Justice

William Leigh (1783–1871) was a Virginia jurist, serving on the Halifax County Court, and later the General Court and finally the Circuit Court of Law and Chancery.^[1]

Early and family life

Born in May 1783 in

Leigh married Rebecca Selden Watkins (1786–1852) on December 15, 1807, and they had seven children. They moved to Halifax County, Virginia where Leigh built an estate, Leighwood.

Career

Admitted to the bar in 1805, Leigh practiced law and served as a judge for the Halifax County Court. He represented Halifax, Charlotte, and Prince Edward Counties in the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1829-1830. After voters adopted the new constitution, the General Assembly appointed Leigh a judge of the Virginia General Court (in 1831), and he continued in that post until the General Court was abolished in 1851. He was then appointed to the Circuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery and held that position until he retired.

He is also known as one of three executors of the will of U.S. Senator John Randolph of Roanoke, along with Bishop William Meade. Randolph's will freed his slaves, and was subject to decades of legal challenges before the executors finally bought land in Ohio, where the freed slaves, after some additional difficulties, were able to settle.^[3]

Death and legacy

Leigh died at "Leighwood" in Halifax County July 19, 1871, and was buried at St. John's Episcopal Church in Halifax County. Some of his papers were acquired by the Library of Virginia in 1923.^[4]

References