--- title: "Josiah D. Coleman | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/josiah-d-coleman-presiding-justice-mississippi-supreme-court-northern-district-3-place-3-ms" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Josiah D. Coleman Mississippi Supreme Court ยท Presiding Justice ## Profile - Court: Mississippi Supreme Court - State: Mississippi - Role: Presiding Justice - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-08-22 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Josiah Dennis Coleman is an American jurist serving as Presiding Justice, District 3, Position 3, of the Supreme Court of Mississippi since January 7, 2013, and became Presiding Justice on January 6, 2025 - Judge, Mississippi Supreme Court, 2013-present - As of 2025, Coleman serves as Presiding Justice for District 3, Position 3, with a term ending in 2029 ### Education - In 2020, he received an LL.M. in judicial studies from Duke University School of Law - B.A. in history and philosophy cum laude from the University of Mississippi in 1995, followed by a J.D. from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1999. ### Additional information - Practitioner, 2012-2012 - Born November 3, 1972 in Choctaw County, Mississippi, near Ackerman, Coleman graduated valedictorian from Ackerman High School. - Date of birth: 1972-11-03 - After law school, Coleman clerked for U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Allan Alexander in the Northern District of Mississippi for nearly two years. - focusing on defense litigation and appellate advocacy in insurance, product liability, and professional malpractice cases - He then practiced law for 12 years in Tupelo and Oxford - He is admitted to practice before all Mississippi state and federal courts and the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals State of Mississippi Judiciary - His grandfather, J.P. Coleman, was Mississippi Governor, a U.S. Court of Appeals judge, and briefly a state Supreme Court justice; his father, Thomas Coleman, was an original member of the Mississippi Court of Appeals - Coleman is the second member of his family to serve on the Mississippi Supreme Court. ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### electronic media coverage Scope: statewide Mississippi allows electronic media coverage of public judicial proceedings in appellate and trial courts of record, subject to the rules and presiding judge control. Evidence excerpt: Electronic media coverage of public judicial proceedings shall be allowed in the appellate and trial courts of record in this state subject to the conditions below. [Mississippi Rules for Electronic and Photographic Coverage of Judicial Proceedings](https://courts.ms.gov/research/rules/msrulesofcourt/rules_electronicphotographic_coverage.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### presiding judge discretion Scope: statewide The presiding Mississippi justice or judge may limit or terminate electronic coverage when necessary to protect rights, witnesses, dignity of the court, or orderly proceedings. Evidence excerpt: The presiding justice or judge has the discretion to limit or terminate electronic coverage at any time during the proceedings [Mississippi Rules for Electronic and Photographic Coverage of Judicial Proceedings](https://courts.ms.gov/research/rules/msrulesofcourt/rules_electronicphotographic_coverage.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### advance notice for media Scope: statewide Mississippi media representatives must provide advance notice for electronic or photographic coverage under the court rules. Evidence excerpt: Rule 5 ... requires that media representatives give at least 48 hours [Mississippi Rules for Electronic and Photographic Coverage of Judicial Proceedings](https://courts.ms.gov/research/rules/msrulesofcourt/rules_electronicphotographic_coverage.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.sos.ms.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Entire%202026%20Judiciary%20Directory%20and%20Court%20Calendar.pdf) - [Official roster](https://www.sos.ms.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Entire%202026%20Judiciary%20Directory%20and%20Court%20Calendar.pdf) - [Mississippi Secretary of State official judicial roster](https://www.sos.ms.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Entire%202026%20Judiciary%20Directory%20and%20Court%20Calendar.pdf) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/4868/josiah-d-coleman/) - [Mississippi Rules for Electronic and Photographic Coverage of Judicial Proceedings](https://courts.ms.gov/research/rules/msrulesofcourt/rules_electronicphotographic_coverage.pdf) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/4868/josiah-d-coleman/) - [Official biography source for Josiah D. Coleman](https://www.sos.ms.gov/content/documents/ed_pubs/pubs/2026JD/JD%20and%20Court%20Calendar%202026.pdf) - [Wikidata: Josiah D. Coleman](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16973417) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/josiah-d-coleman-presiding-justice-mississippi-supreme-court-northern-district-3-place-3-ms", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/josiah-d-coleman-presiding-justice-mississippi-supreme-court-northern-district-3-place-3-ms", "name": "Josiah D. Coleman | KnowJudges", "description": "Josiah D. Coleman, Mississippi Supreme Court. 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