Joseph Kilgore

Prior to joining Watkins & Eager, Joey served for 14 years as Chancellor of the Sixth Chancery Court District, which includes Attala, Carroll, Choctaw, Kemper, Neshoba, and Winston counties.  He was appointed to the bench by Governor Haley Barbour in 2010 and was elected to the bench without opposition in four elections.  He served as Chairman of the Mississippi Conference of Chancery Judges from 2016 to 2017.  As Chancellor, he established and operated the district’s Youth Intervention Court.  He was appointed by the Chief Justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court to the Commission on Guardianship and Conservatorship and served as Co-chair of the Commission. He was also appointed to the Mississippi Task Force on Foster Care and Adoption.  He served on the Attorney General’s Mental Health Task Force, the Guardian ad Litem Transparency and Oversight Panel and the Secretary of State’s Probate Code Study Group.  In 2022, the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project honored Judge Kilgore with the Beacon of Justice Award for outstanding leadership in promoting and supporting equal access to justice for indigent litigants.

Before he was appointed to the bench, Joey served as a general partner with the Philadelphia law firm of Alford, Thomas & Kilgore. He also served as board attorney for the Philadelphia Public School District and Philadelphia Utilities, as well as Kemper County Special Master in Chancery/Youth Court Referee.

• Mississippi Bar (Chair and founding member of the Child Welfare and Advocacy section, 2023-2024; Bicentennial of Mississippi's Judiciary and Legal Profession Committee)
• Neshoba County Bar Association (Past President)
• Choctaw Bar Association
• Mississippi Access to Justice Commission, current member