John Dan Kemp

Dan Kemp
Chief Justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court
In office January 1, 2017 – December 31, 2024
Preceded by	Howard W. Brill
Succeeded by	Karen R. Baker
Personal details
Born	John Dan Kemp Jr. (1951-09-08) September 8, 1951 (age 73) Batesville, Arkansas, U.S.
Education	University of Arkansas, Fayetteville (BA, JD)

John Dan Kemp Jr. (born September 8, 1951) is an American lawyer who has served as the chief justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court since 2017.^[1]

Biography

Born in Batesville, Arkansas, Kemp attended Mountain View High School and received his undergraduate degree from the University of Arkansas in 1973, followed by a Juris Doctor from the University of Arkansas School of Law in 1976. While attending the University of Arkansas, he was a member of the Gamma Upsilon chapter of Sigma Nu fraternity. Kemp was a city judge and city attorney in Mountain View before being elected as a circuit judge in Stone County, Arkansas in 1986, which position he held for 29 years.^[2]

Chief Justice of Arkansas

In 2015, Kemp decided to challenge sitting Justice Courtney Rae Hudson for the Chief Justice position.^[3][4] Kemp defeated Hudson to win the seat.^[2]

References

1. The American Bench: Judges of the Nation, 2002/2003. Forster-Long, LLC. December 2002. ISBN 9780931398469.
2. Riddle, Brandon (March 1, 2016). "Kemp defeats Goodson in chief justice race for state's high court". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
3. Brantley, Max (November 6, 2015). "Judge Dan Kemp to challenge Courtney Goodson for chief justice". Arkansas Times.
4. "Sitting justice, circuit judge vying to be Supreme Court chief justice". Arkansas News. February 28, 2016.

Legal offices
Preceded by Howard W. Brill	Chief Justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court 2017–2025	Succeeded by Karen R. Baker