2025 Alumni Award Recipients

Dean Karen J. Sneddon and the Mercer Law Alumni Association Board of Directors present the 2025 Alumni Award recipients.

• The Outstanding Alumnus/Alumna Award is given to an alumnus/alumna of the School of Law who has served the profession of law in an outstanding manner, and in so doing, has brought honor to his/her person and the School of Law. This award is presented for service to humanity and dedication which have fostered the ideals of the School of Law.
• The Meritorious Service Award is presented to an alumnus/alumna of the School of Law who has demonstrated his/her support of the Alumni Association and the Law School through his/her contribution of time and gifts.
• The Young Alumnus/Alumna Volunteer of the Year Award recognizes a young alumnus/alumna of the School of Law who has provided valuable service and selfless commitment to enhance the experience of our law students.

The Honorable Samuel D. Ozburn, ’76
Outstanding Alumnus Award

Appointed to the bench in 1995 by former governor Zell Miller, the Honorable Samuel D. Ozburn, ’76, served as a judge for the Alcovy Judicial Circuit Superior Court in Georgia until his retirement in 2020. He had been elected to six terms and ran without opposition. During his judicial tenure, Judge Ozburn created a mental health court – the Newton County Resource Court, and a program that allows school-age children to visit and learn about the courts within the Alcovy Judicial Circuit. He also established a literacy program that helps criminal defendants earn their GED. Upon his retirement, Governor Brian Kemp appointed him to be a Senior Superior Court Judge. Judge Ozburn served as chairman of the Council of Superior Court Judges’ Court Security Committee from its creation in 2000 until his retirement. He was a member of the Judicial Council of Georgia’s Court Emergency Management Committee and the AOC Ad Hoc Committee on Court Security for Georgia Municipal Courts. Judge Ozburn served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia by special designation in 2005, and has spoken at continuing education seminars sponsored by the Newton County Bar Association, the Walton County Bar Association, the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association, and the State Bar of Georgia. Prior to joining the bench, he spent his legal career in private practice. He began as an attorney at Ballard, Thigpen & Griffin in Covington before becoming a partner at Ballard, Ozburn & Stephenson in 1977. Then in 1979, he became a sole practitioner which continued until his appointment. His area of practice included corporate law, domestic relations, real property, and personal injury matters. Judge Ozburn is a past president of the Alcovy Circuit Bar Association, the Kiwanis Club of Covington, and Newton County Mental Health Association. He sat on the boards of directors for Mercer Law School, the Homer F. Sharp Memorial Scholarship Fund, the Covington-Newton County Chamber of Commerce, and the Covington-Newton County Recreation Commission. He has been on the board and served as Chairman of the Salvation Army of Newton County since 1981.  Judge Ozburn is the recipient of the Justice Robert Benham Award for Community Service from the State Bar of Georgia (2011), the R.O. Arnold Award from the Newton County Chamber of Commerce (2013), and the first annual Community Spirit Award from the Covington News (2018).

The Honorable Sara L. Doyle, ’94
Meritorious Service Award

Judge Sara L. Doyle, ’94, was elected and took office on the Georgia Court of Appeals on January 1, 2009. From July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2017, Judge Doyle was the Court’s chief judge where she was instrumental in implementing an historic jurisdiction shift of cases from the Supreme Court, the addition of a new fifth division adding three more judges to the Court, and funding and design of the new Nathan Deal Judicial Center. Judge Doyle has also sat by designation on the Supreme Court of Georgia and on Georgia’s Statewide Business Court. She is currently a presiding judge. She began her legal career as a civil litigator with Wilson, Strickland & Benson, P.C. Just prior to taking office, she was an equity partner with the national firm Holland & Knight, LLP where she practiced law with a focus on education issues. As a practicing attorney, Judge Doyle was selected as a Georgia Super Lawyer from 2004 to 2008, and in 2006 and 2008, was named one of the top 50 female attorneys in Georgia. She has also been recognized as one of Georgia’s legal elite by Georgia Trend Magazine. Judge Doyle is involved in many professional, civic, and religious organizations. She served on Mercer University’s board of trustees 2015 to 2020, on the Law School’s board of visitors 2012 to 2015, and is a current member of the Mercer Law Foundation board. In 2021, she received the Distinguished Service Award from the Atlanta Bar Association and the YLD Distinguished Judicial Service Award from the State Bar in 2020. She is married to fellow Mercer Law graduate Jay Doyle, ’94, and has two children: Mary Donovan (17) and Davis (14).  Sara is known for her Christmas decorating, as well as her love for the soft drink Tab and the Florida Gators.

Major Wesley Watts, ’22
Young Alumnus Volunteer of the Year Award

Since graduating, Major Wesley Watts,’22, has been a dependable and frequent volunteer at the Law School. While stationed at Warner Robins Air Force Base (WRAFB), he was called on often to advise and present to Mercer Law’s Student Veterans Association. He has served on panels for the Black Law Students Association and was an alumni adviser to their leadership team. He participated in prospective student events like Diversity Day and Accepted Student Day. In addition to his on-campus work with student organizations, Major Watts has met with students interested in a possible career in the military. Currently, Major Watts serves as a special trial counsel for the Department of the Air Force where he has recently been promoted to Major. In this role he represents the United States as lead counsel in the investigation and prosecution of covered offenses pursuant to 10 U.S.C. § 801(17) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice and other offenses over which the office exercises authority. These offenses are mainly major violent victim crimes and make up the most complex litigation in the Department of the Air Force. The Air Force’s Office of Special Trial Counsel reports directly to the secretary of the Air Force with no intervening authority. In this role, he also provides leadership, mentorship, and training to junior trial counsel around the world. From 2015-2019, Major Watts was directly responsible for the maintenance and employment of more than 140 combat coded aircraft valued at more than $12 billion and was responsible for the leadership of more than 1,000 troops. In 2019, he was one of four Air Force Officers nationwide selected to the United States Air Force’s Funded Legal Education Program where only a select few get the chance every year to pursue a legal education while remaining on active duty.  At Mercer Law, Major Watts was a member of the Brainerd Currie Honor Society and received the CALI Award in 2022 for the highest grade in advanced trial practice.