Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday named Alabama Court of Civil Appeals Judge Bill Lewis to the Alabama Supreme Court, replacing Justice Jay Mitchell, who resigned Monday.

Lewis becomes the fourth Black justice and the first Black Republican to serve on the nine-member Alabama Supreme Court.

Lewis was the presiding circuit judge in the 19th Judicial Circuit in Elmore County before Ivey appointed him to the Court of Civil Appeals in February 2024.

Before that, Lewis was the senior partner in a law firm he started in 2006. He has also served as an assistant district attorney in the 19th Circuit.

“Judge Bill Lewis continues demonstrating justice and fairness under the law, as well as a willingness to serve the people of Alabama,” Ivey said.

“His decades of experience will serve the Supreme Court of Alabama well, and I am confident he is the best choice.”

Lewis received his undergraduate degrees in political science and economics from the University of the South and his law degree from the Cumberland School of Law.

Lewis’ appointment is effective immediately.

Alabama’s previous Black justices were Oscar W. Adams Jr., who was appointed by Gov. Fob James in 1980 and elected in 1982 and 1988; Ralph D. Cook, appointed by Gov. Jim Folsom Jr. in 1993 and elected in 1994, and John H. England Jr., appointed by Gov. Don Siegelman in 1999.

Mitchell, in his resignation letter to Ivey on Monday, said he looked forward to an announcement about his future in the coming days.

Yellowhammer News reported that Mitchell was running for attorney general, although Mitchell has not announced that.

Mitchell was elected to the court on 2018 and reelected without opposition to a six-year term in 2024.

Ivey will appoint a replacement for Lewis on the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals.