John L. Carroll

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John Lawrence Carroll (October 19, 1943 – August 14, 2023) was an American judge and law school administrator. He served as a U.S. magistrate judge for the Middle District of Alabama from 1986 to 2001 and as the dean of Cumberland School of Law from 2001 to 2014.

Born in Washington, D.C., Carroll grew up in a Catholic family of Irish descent. He graduated from Gonzaga College High School in 1961 and earned a BA in economics from Tufts University in 1965 before joining the Marine Corps.

In the Marines (1965–1969), Carroll flew more than 200 combat missions in Vietnam and left as a captain. After military service, he briefly sold furniture before deciding to pursue law.

He completed his law degree at Cumberland School of Law (Samford University) in 1974, magna cum laude, and earned an LL.M. in constitutional law from Harvard Law School. He then joined the Southern Poverty Law Center as legal director from 1975 to 1984, working on civil rights cases that helped prompt prison reforms in Alabama.

After a period in private practice and teaching at Mercer University and the University of Alabama, Carroll became a U.S. magistrate judge in 1986, serving until 2001. He also chaired the Magistrate Judges’ Education Committee and served on the Judicial Conference’s Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

In 2001 he returned to Cumberland as dean, leading the law school until 2014. The school strengthened its trial advocacy program and gained national recognition. He then taught full time and later directed the Alabama Ethics Commission briefly.

Carroll also served on commissions promoting access to justice and professionalism. In 2016 he was chosen to prosecute former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore in an ethics case, a move that sparked debate but proceeded. In 2020 he helped establish the Cumberland Veterans Legal Assistance Clinic and retired from teaching in 2022.

He was married to Susan Gaskins since 1970 and had one daughter. Carroll enjoyed cycling, running, and playing guitar. He died on August 14, 2023, in Birmingham, Alabama, at age 79.