James Dickson Phillips, Jr.

James Dickson Phillips Jr. (September 23, 1922 – August 27, 2017) was an American attorney and jurist who served as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

Early life and education

Born in Scotland County, North Carolina, Phillips grew up in Laurinburg, North Carolina and attended its public schools. He graduated from high school in 1939 as the salutatorian of his graduating class. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree Phi Beta Kappa in 1943 from Davidson College and a Juris Doctor in 1948 from the University of North Carolina School of Law, where he was associate editor of the school's law review and a member of the Order of the Coif.

Military service

Phillips was a First Lieutenant in the United States Army from 1943 until 1946. From 1994 to 1995 he had as a law clerk Mitchell Berman, who later became a Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.