Georgia Courts

Each February, the achievements of African Americans are highlighted during African American History Month.  The Judicial Council/Administrative Office of the Courts looks to highlight influential African American Judges in Georgia during the month.  

February 1

In 2012, Senior Judge Horace T. Ward retired from a prolific career that began 62 years earlier when Judge Ward became the first African-American to apply to the University of Georgia’s School of Law.

Born in LaGrange, Judge Ward received a Bachelors Degree from Morehouse College and a Master’s Degree from Atlanta University.  In 1950, Judge Ward applied to the UGA School of Law and was denied admission.  Throughout the 1950’s Ward took his case to federal court, served two years in the US Army, and eventually entered Northwestern University’s School of Law. 

In 1979, President Jimmy Carter appointed Judge Ward to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, the first African American appointed to the federal bench in Georgia.  Prior to his federal appointment, Judge Ward was appointed to the Superior Court in Fulton County by then-Gov. Jimmy Carter (pictured above, second from left).