Georgia State-Wide Business Court Welcomes New Judge and Bids Farewell to Inaugural Judge

Judge William “Bill” Hamrick III was appointed judge of the Georgia State-Wide Business Court by Governor Kemp on August 3, 2022 and was sworn into office on September 26.   Prior to joining the Business Court, Judge Hamrick served on the Superior Court for the Coweta Judicial Circuit beginning in 2012.

Surrounded by family, friends, and many judicial-branch colleagues, the Georgia State-Wide Business Court’s inaugural judge, Walter Davis, was celebrated as he bid farewell to the court that he helped build from the ground up.

During his remarks, Judge Davis recalled saying at his swearing-in that he wanted his kids to appreciate the importance of public service, and during her remarks, staff attorney Lynette Jimenez assured him that his kids will look back on this time and say, “he did something special, something historic.”

In a moving tribute, Clerk of Court Angie Davis noted the “many hats” Judge Davis donned during his tenure on the Business Court many of which she is sure even he did not anticipate, like that of interior designer as the Court’s chambers were completed in the newly-constructed Nathan Deal Judicial Center.

Director of the Judicial Council/Administrative Office of the Courts, Cynthia Clanton, fondly remembered first meeting this “energetic new judge” when the two entered into an agreement for support services to be provided to the Business Court by the JC/AOC.

Staff attorney Lynette Jimenez expressed deep gratitude for Judge Davis’s leadership as the “ideal inaugural judge” to build this court and in the sort of banter that only exists between a judge and his or her staff attorney, she warmly remembered him frequently saying, “don’t fight the hypos!”  

A few of Judge Davis’s favorites—Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and Diet Mountain Dew—were on hand for the festivities.

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