Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty - J. Brent Walker

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J. Brent Walker

J. Brent Walker - Executive Director

J. Brent Walker, Executive Director of the Baptist Joint Committee, is both a member of the Supreme Court Bar and an ordained minister. A native of Charleston, W.Va., Walker earned B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of Florida and holds a J.D. degree from Stetson University College of Law.

Walker was a partner in the law firm of Carlton, Fields in Tampa, Fla. Walker left the firm in 1986 to enter Southern Seminary, Louisville, Ky., where he earned a Master of Divinity degree in 1989 and was named the most outstanding graduate. He pastored the Richland Baptist Church, Falmouth, Ky., and routinely speaks in churches and denominational gatherings. Having taught 10 years as an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University Law Center, he has, since 2003, served as an adjunct professor at the Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond.

Walker has been published widely and routinely provides commentary on church-state issues in the national media.

His wife, Nancy, is pastor for congregational care at Columbia Baptist Church in Falls Church, Va. They have two children. Ryan is a singer/songwriter, and Layton is a teacher in Falls Church. Layton and her husband, Lucas, are the parents of Walker's first grandchild.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

Executive Director, Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, Washington, DC, 1999-Present;
General Counsel, 1993-1999;
Associate General Counsel, 1989-1993
Adjunct Professor, Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond, 2003-present
Adjunct Professor, Georgetown Univ. Law Center, 1994-2003
Attorney, Carlton, Fields, Tampa, FL, partner, 1982-1986; Associate, 1976-1981

MINISTERIAL EXPERIENCE:

Pulpit Supply, 1989-Present
Pastor, Richland Baptist Church, Falmouth, KY, 1988-1989
Ordained to Ministry, Bayshore Baptist Church, Tampa, FL, August 14, 1988

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES:

Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States
The Florida Bar
Bar of the District of Columbia
Board of Governors, The Florida Bar (Young Lawyers' Section), 1985-1986
Chairman, Hillsborough County Code Enforcement Board, 1985-1986
President, Hillsborough County Bar Association (Young Lawyer's Section), 1983
Published: Stetson Law Review, Florida Bar Journal, Florida Civil Practice Before Trial, Basic Construction Disputes, Liberty Magazine, Pulpit Digest, Doran's Ministers Manual, Proclaiming the Baptist Vision: Religious Liberty, Religious Liberty and Church-State Separation.
Edited: The Trophy of Baptists, James Dunn: Champion for Religious Liberty.

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS:

Speaks frequently on church-state issues at churches, conferences, and seminars and on University and seminary campuses.
Mr. Walker has lectured at American University, University of Maryland, Samford University, Carson-Newman College, Georgetown College, Central Baptist Theological Seminary, Furman University, Duke Divinity School, Southwestern Seminary, Wesley Theological Seminary and the Knight Center for Specialized Journalism. In addition, he has appeared on MacNeil/Lehrer, CNN Talk Back Live, NBC Today Show, Fox News (O'Reilly Factor), National Public Radio "All Things Considered" and "Morning Edition", he is often quoted in numerous newspapers, including the Washington Post, New York Times, Boston Globe, Atlanta Constitution, Tampa Tribune, and St. Petersburg Times.

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