Kristi Haskins Johnson
Kristi Haskins Johnson (born 1980) is a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi and former Solicitor General of Mississippi. Education. Johnson earned her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Mississippi in 2003 and her Juris Doctor, "summa cum laude", from the Mississippi College School of Law in 2008, where she served as an editor of the "Mississippi College Law Review". Legal career. Upon graduation from law school, Johnson served as a law clerk to Judge Sharion Aycock of the United States District Court for the Northern  District of Mississippi and to Judge Leslie Southwick of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. She worked in private practice at Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart and later served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi. On February 24, 2020, Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch appointed Johnson the first Solicitor General of Mississippi. She left her position as Solicitor General upon being appointed a federal judge. Haskins has served as an adjunct professor at Mississippi College. Federal judicial service. On March 30, 2020, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Johnson  to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi. On May 4, 2020, her nomination was sent to the Senate. President Trump nominated Johnson to the seat vacated by Judge Keith Starrett, who took senior status on April 30, 2019. On September 9, 2020, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee. On October 22, 2020, the Judiciary Committee reported her nomination by a 12–0 vote. On November 17, 2020, her nomination was confirmed in the United States Senate by a vote of 53–43. She  received her judicial commission on December 1, 2020. Haskins is the first woman to serve as a federal judge in the Southern District of Mississippi. Memberships. Johnson is a member of the Federalist Society, the Federal Bar Association, and the Charles L. Clark Chapter of the American Inns of Court.