Rhesa Hawkins Barksdale at a glance
- Current role
- Judge
- Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
- Jurisdiction
- National federal courts · Federal
- Judicial service
- March 12, 1990–present
Rhesa Hawkins Barksdale
Judge · U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Available research
Biography
Professional career
- Chairman, Mississippi Vietnam Veterans Leadership Program, 1982-1985
- Instructor, Mississippi College School of Law, 1976-present
- Instructor in constitutional law, University of Mississippi Law School Paralegal Course, 1975-1976
- Private practice, Jackson, MS, 1973-1990
- Law clerk, Hon. Byron White, Supreme Court of the United States, 1972-1973
- U.S. Army, 1966-1970
Judicial service
- Judge, Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, 1990-2009
- Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Education
- Murrah High School
- United States Military Academy
- University of Mississippi School of Law
Personal record
Born 1944 · Jackson, MS
Courtroom rules and guidance
Appellate Oral Argument
In federal courts of appeals, oral argument is allowed unless a three-judge panel unanimously finds one of Rule 34's specified grounds for dispensing with it; the clerk provides the date, time, place, and time allocation.
Oral argument must be allowed in every case unless a panel of three judges who have examined the briefs and record unanimously agrees that oral argument is unnecessaryFederal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument ↗
Sources
Federal Judicial Center biography
Identity source · HTML · checked July 25, 2026
https://www.fjc.gov/node/1377456CourtListener judicial biographical directory
Identity source · HTML · checked August 2, 2026
https://www.courtlistener.com/person/174/rhesa-hawkins-barksdale/Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument
Judge research source · HTML · checked July 26, 2026
https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-appellate-procedure