Judge Ben W. Studdard III: Court & Assignment | KnowJudges # Ben W. Studdard III Senior Judge · [Henry County State Court](/kyj/court/ga/henry-county-state-court) ## Judicial assignments [Flint Judicial Circuit](/kyj/court/ga/flint-judicial-circuit)Senior Judge — circuit affiliation; court class unconfirmedThe official Senior Judges directory lists this circuit affiliation. A specific current assignment is not established. Senior judge available for assignment; this does not establish a current primary assignment. Source checked October 15, 2026. [Roster source 1](https://georgiacourts.knack.com/gcd2/#home/directory-entries/58af0225ce9168f520c4d9da/) · [Roster source 2](https://us-api.knack.com/v1/pages/scene_1/views/view_5/records?rows_per_page=1000&page=1&filters=%7B%22match%22%3A+%22and%22%2C+%22rules%22%3A+%5B%7B%22field%22%3A+%22field_19%22%2C+%22operator%22%3A+%22is%22%2C+%22value%22%3A+%22Senior+Judges%22%7D%5D%7D) These published assignments do not certify a complete bench. ## Ben W. Studdard III at a glance Current roleSenior Judge Court[Henry County State Court](/kyj/court/ga/henry-county-state-court) Current assignment[Henry County State Court](/kyj/court/ga/henry-county-state-court) JurisdictionGeorgia · State Judicial serviceActive ## Biography ### Professional career - Benjamin W. Studdard III was the Chief Judge of the Henry County State Court in Georgia from its creation in 1998 until his retirement in 2021 - First Judge of Henry County State Court: Appointed in 1998, the year after the court’s creation, and served as Chief Judge - Before joining the bench, Studdard was a partner at Smith, Welch & Studdard (now Smith, Welch, Webb & White) ### Education - in English, Mercer University — B.A. - Mercer University Walter F. George School of Law — J.D. ### Additional information - At his 2021 retirement celebration, peers described him as “snuggly” and scholarly, with honors including the Ogden Doremus Award from the Georgia Council of State Court Judges - Elected in 2014 and re‐elected in 2018 - served as attorney for the City of Hampton - Former President of the Council of State Court Judges of Georgia - Post‐retirement: Continued as a senior judge on an as‐needed basis, authored legal treatises, and participated in judicial training programs, including U.S. State Department‐sponsored training for judges in the country of Georgia - A native of Henry County, raised in Hampton and later in Luella ## Sources Identity source checked August 25, 2026. 01 ### Georgia Courts Directory Identity source · HTML · Source checked August 25, 2026 [View Georgia Courts Directory ↗](https://georgiacourts.knack.com/gcd2/#directory-entries/entry-details/58af0225ce9168f520c4d9da/) 1 ### ballotpedia.org — biography evidence Biography evidence collected 2026-10-08 [View source ↗](https://ballotpedia.org/Benjamin_Studdard) 2 ### georgiacourtsjournal.org — biography evidence Biography evidence collected 2026-10-08 [View source ↗](https://georgiacourtsjournal.org/2021/08/27/a-celebration-of-chief-judge-ben-w-studdards-retirement-from-the-state-court-of-henry-county/) 3 ### icle.gabar.org — biography evidence Biography evidence collected 2026-10-08 [View source ↗](https://icle.gabar.org/speaker/benjamin-studdard-1235101) 4 ### trellis.law — biography evidence Biography evidence collected 2026-10-08 [View source ↗](https://trellis.law/judge/benjamin.w.studdard.iii) [Public Records & Data Use](/public-records-data-use) · [Corrections policy](/corrections) Found an error?[Let us know](mailto:info@knowjudges.com?subject=Found%20an%20error%20on%20KnowJudges.com&body=We%20found%20an%20error%20on%20the%20page%20https%3A%2F%2Fknowjudges.com%2Fkyj%2Fjudge%2Fben-w-studdard-iii-ga-35b348b412b2.%0A%0APlease%20correct%20this%20with%3A%0A%0A%5Bdescribe%20the%20correction%5D%0A%0AHere%20is%20the%20source%20supporting%20our%20claim%3A%0A%0A%5Battach%20a%20link%20or%20PDF%5D) ## Published courtroom rules ### Shared court rules - [GA judicial conduct Rule 2.8 — courtroom order and courtesy](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-966932b4143407baf629735a) — State judicial courts only; published Code version February 1, 2024. Shared decorum baseline; does not establish complete court-specific practice. Shared baseline only, not a judge-specific preference or complete local rules inventory. Apply source exceptions, case-type limits, later amendments and case orders. [Official source](https://www.gasupreme.us/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Code-of-Judicial-Conduct-2024_02_01.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.