Alabama Appellate Courts
Voter Guide 2010
Nonpartisan information about the Alabama Courts of Appeal and the
candidates running in those elections in 2010.


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Kelli Wise
Republican Party Candidate for
Associate Justice,
Alabama Supreme Court, Place 1

General Election
November 2, 2010

Candidate Biography

The following biographical information was provided by the candidate. It is published here verbatim up to a limit of 250 words for each biographical line item.


Place of Residence:                                                                                    
Montgomery, Alabama                                                                                                                                               
Family:                                                                                    
Husband – Arthur Ray; Daughter – Hanah-Mathis Wise Ray, 11                                                                                                                                               
Education:                                                                                    
[No Reply]                                                                                                                                                
Occupation:                                                                                    
Presiding Judge, Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals                                                                                                                                               
Employer:                                                                                    
State of Alabama – Court of Criminal Appeals                                                                                                                                               
Bar Admission(s) &
Date(s) of Admission:                                                                                    
Admitted to Alabama State Bar in 1995                                                                                                                                               
Legal / Judicial
Experience:                                                                                    
Prior to my election to the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals in 2000 (re-elected in 2006), I spent several years as a staff attorney on both the Court of Criminal Appeals and the Alabama Supreme Court. Earlier in my legal career I worked in the Governor’s Legislative Office, served as in-house counsel for ProStaff Human Resources, Inc. and was associated with the law firms of John Taber & Associates and Pittman, Pittman, Carwie & Fuquay. While in private practice I represented many hard working Alabama citizens focusing on employment law, domestic relations, probate issues and various criminal cases.
Other Experience:                                                                                    
After obtaining my undergraduate degree (BS in Biology with minor in nursing), I worked with Procter & Gamble.                                                                                                                                               
Honors & Awards:                                                                                    
Due to my commitment to children’s issues I was appointed by Governor Bob Riley to serve on the Alabama Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Board in 2003 and reappointed in 2006. In 2009, I was appointed by the Alabama Law Institute to serve on the Criminal Code Committee which is tasked with rewriting the current criminal code. In addition, I currently serve on the Alabama Criminal Rules Committee, the Appellate Rules Committee, the Legislative Judicial Review Committee, Pardon & Paroles Nomination Committee and serve on the Board of Directors for The Family Sunshine Center and Max Credit Union. I am the past program chairman of the Montgomery County Bar Association and I have served as a member of the State Bar Volunteer Lawyer Program. I am the recipient of the 1999 National Young Republican of the Year, the 2006 Auburn University Montgomery Graduate Student of the Year and I was recently selected as one of the “Top 40” graduates in AUM’s forty years. In 2002, I was selected by the American Council of Young Political Leaders to participate in a 6 week bi-lateral exchange with Indonesia and was asked to return to Jakarta in 2006 to be a featured lecturer at the International Women’s Conference. Additionally, I have been a frequent speaker at continuing legal education classes.