Judge Jim Spears, Vice Chair of the Commission

Circuit Judge, 12th Judicial Circuit Division III

B.A. History/Political Science, 1968, Arkansas Tech University
J.D., 1973, University of Arkansas School of Law

Judge Jim Spears has been a Circuit Judge in Sebastian County since 1993.

He is a graduate of Westark College '66, Arkansas Tech University '68 and the University of Arkansas School of Law '73. He is married to Dixie Bean Spears and has two children, John and Julie. Jon is a graduate of Tufts University, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and works for the Clinton Foundation in Bogata, Colombia. Julie is a nurse in Fayetteville studying to be a nurse practitioner specializing in pediatrics.

Judge Spears is active in civic activities including the Civic Center Commission and the Boy Scouts. He is an alumnus of Leadership Fort Smith and the recipient of the Jack White Leadership Award, the Grady Secrest Humanitarian Award from the Jaycees, the Silver Beaver from the Boy Scouts, awarded the AR Bar Association/Bar Foundation Lawyer Citizen Award for 2004 and the AR Judicial Council Community Service award for 2004.

“It is my pleasure to serve on the Arkansas Access to Justice Commission,” Judge Spears said, “because I see every day the need for legal representation by those who cannot access it. When there is no access to legal assistance, there is no justice. I feel it is my duty to serve.”