By Barnett Wright | The Birmingham Times
Miles Law School on Thursday announced that retired Jefferson County Judge Carole Smitherman will become the school’s new dean.
Smitherman retired from Jefferson County in January after 13 years as a circuit court judge.
“Serving as Dean of Miles Law School is an honor. It is also a great responsibility. As an alumnus of Miles Law School, I have firsthand knowledge of the things that make our academic experience distinct. And as a jurist, I know the value that Miles Law School’s graduates bring with them to the legal field,” said Smitherman.
Established in 1974, Miles Law School has a long list of notable alumni including Jefferson County DA Danny Carr; Bessemer DA Lynneice Washington; State Sen. Rodger Smitherman, and Jefferson County Judges Brendette Brown-Green and Patricia Stephens.
“Continuing Miles Law School’s legacy requires growth. I thank President Bobbie Knight for being a willing partner in our efforts to increase enrollments, advance alumni engagement, and attract distinguished professors to teach our students,” said Carole Smitherman.
Miles College President Bobbie Knight said Smitherman’s selection as dean “is evidence that the school’s leadership understands the importance of continuing its impact in the community. We are all anticipating great things as Judge Smitherman raises Miles Law School’s impact, and extends its legacy.”
A 1979 graduate of Miles Law School, Carole Smitherman served as a Jefferson County Circuit Court Judge, and later as the 31st Mayor of the City of Birmingham. She served for years as a City Councilor in Birmingham.
John O. Hudson, III, Chairman, Miles Law School said Smitherman is the best person for the job. “Her accomplishments as a jurist, a public official, and as a lawyer in the private sector has given her the ability to lead with empathy as she offers mentorship to the next generation,” he said. “She also has the unique ability to convene some of the brightest minds in Alabama’s legal community — a gift that adds value to Miles Law School’s already special academic experience.”
Smitherman retired from Jefferson County in January after a distinguished career that included being the first Black woman hired as a deputy district attorney in Jefferson County and becoming Birmingham’s first Black woman municipal and circuit court judge. She was also the first female African American President of the Birmingham City Council and first female mayor of the City of Birmingham.
Smitherman first stepped into the Jefferson County Courthouse in 1976 when she was hired as a legal clerk in the Circuit Civil Clerk’s Office. In 1979, she began her legal career as a Deputy District Attorney becoming the first Black woman to serve in this capacity in the history of Jefferson County, and remained with the DA’s office until 1987.
In 1991, Republican Governor Guy Hunt appointed Smitherman to the Tenth Judicial Circuit Court Criminal Division Court where she served until 1992 and was the first Black woman to serve as a Circuit Court Judge in Alabama.
In 1997, she began teaching Constitutional Law at Miles Law School and continued for almost 30 years. In 2001, she was elected to the Birmingham City Council for District 6 where she served until 2013, and as President of the Birmingham City Council from November 2005 to November 2009.
In 2012, Smitherman won successful election as a Circuit Judge to the Tenth Judicial Circuit Court, she was re-elected in 2018, and has served continuously, with distinction, until her recent retirement from the bench in January 2025.
