Distinguished Alumni: Justin J. Marcum, W.V. House of Delegates

Distinguished Alumni of the Appalachian School of Law:  

Justin J. Marcum, W.V. House of Delegates

In January 2012, West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin appointed Justin J. Marcum to the 20th District of the West Virginia House of Delegates, comprising Mingo and Wayne Counties, for the remainder of the term of resigning Delegate K. Steve Kominar.

He ran as a Democrat in the last successful run for the office in 2012.  He ran against ASL law student, Nathan Brown.  

At the time of the appointment, the Governor remarked:

“Justin is a young man who has displayed a passion for public service,” Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin said. “As an Assistant County Prosecutor as well as an elected member of the West Virginia Democratic State Executive Committee, 6th district, Justin has shown he values the ability and the rewards of working for the benefit of others. Such a trait will serve the people of the 20th Delegate District well.”

He serves on the following committees in the House of Delegates: Judiciary; Judiciary Subcommittee B; Roads and Transportation; and Political Subdivisions. He serves as Vice-Chair of the Rule-making Review Committee.

He has sponsored legislation relating to education (school drop-out rates); health care records; child neglect; drug treatment programs; grand juror misconduct; firearms; license plates (including one about the “Hatfield and McCoy” regional heritage); self-defense; and voting system certification. 

Marcum graduated from Marshall University with a degree in Business Administration, Economics, and Finance. 

He graduated from the Appalachian School of Law in 2011, thus making his elevation from law student to state legislator nothing but meteoric. 

In law school, he was a member of the Phi Delta Phi legal fraternity and the Energy and Mineral Law Society. 

He has been commissioned as a Kentucky Colonel and recognized in Who’s Who in Law. 

The former underground coal miner’s support of coal miners and the coal industry is widely known. 

Marcum served as a Mingo County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney from August 2011 to the present. He also runs his own law office. 

His public service also extends to the following organizations:

• American Bar Association
• West Virginia State Bar 
• Ancient Free and Accepted Mason
• Beni Kedem Shriner
• Friends of Coal
• High Country Hunting Club
• National Rifle Association
• Omicron Delta Epsilon
• West Virginia State Democratic Executive Committee (2010)
• Former President of Mingo County Young Democrats
• Mingo Central High School Counseling Advisory Council (2012)

Marcum resides with his wife, Latisha, and daughter, Tenley Ann, in Williamson, West Virginia.