Richard W. Story

Richard W. Story (born 1953) is an American jurist serving as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia since 1998. He was appointed by President Bill Clinton and assumed senior status (semi-retired status letting federal judges keep a reduced caseload) on December 1, 2018.¹

Early life and education

Story was born in 1953 in Augusta, Georgia.¹ He grew up in Harlem, Georgia, a small town about twenty miles west of Augusta, and attended Harlem High School before enrolling at LaGrange College.² He received his bachelor's degree from LaGrange College in 1975 and his law degree from the University of Georgia School of Law in 1978.^{1 • 3}

Legal career

Story began his legal career in private practice in Gainesville, Georgia, from 1978 to 1986, joining the firm Hulsey, Oliver & Mahar.^{1 • 2} While in private practice, he served as a part-time special assistant attorney general for the State of Georgia from 1980 to 1984.¹ In 1985, the same year he was named Gainesville-Hall County Young Man of the Year, he became a part-time judge on the Hall County Juvenile Court, serving until 1986.^{1 • 2}

In 1986, Georgia Governor Joe Frank Harris appointed Story as a judge of the Superior Court of Georgia, Northeastern Judicial Circuit, after only a year on the juvenile court.² He served as chief judge of that court from 1986 to 1997 and was reelected without opposition in three subsequent elections.^{1 • 2}

Federal judicial service

President Bill Clinton nominated Story to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia on September 15, 1997.^{1 • 3} The Senate confirmed him by voice vote on January 28, 1998, and he received his commission on February 4, 1998.¹ He assumed senior status on December 1, 2018.¹

Notable cases

In 2006, Story authored two decisions interpreting the First Amendment. In Pelphrey v. Cobb County, he held that the Establishment Clause did not bar the practice at issue, breaking from a growing trend of district court decisions on the question.² The following month, he granted preliminary injunctive relief barring a Georgia sales tax exemption for the Bible and other religious texts.²

Also beginning in 1998, Story presided over a racial discrimination case brought against the Coca-Cola Company. He oversaw a complicated settlement involving a nine-figure payment, under which a task force was to remain in place for four years; Story subsequently extended its term to five years after Neville Isdell, the chairman and chief executive officer of Coca-Cola, was impressed with the strides the task force had made.²

References

1. Biographical Directory of Article III Federal Judges: Richard W. Story
2. Hon. Richard W. Story
3. President Clinton Nominates Judge Richard Story

Initially written Sep 27, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 29, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026

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