
Governor Jim Justice appointed Clay County attorney Michael W. Asbury, Jr., to the bench in the then-Fourteenth Judicial Circuit (Braxton, Clay, Gilmer, and Webster Counties) in August 2023. He was elected in May 2024 to an eight-year term that began January 1, 2025. Judge Asbury serves on the Legislative, Education, and Re-Alignment Committees of the West Virginia Judicial Association.
Judge Asbury is a native of Clay County. He is a 1993 graduate of Clay County High School, a 2002 graduate of West Virginia State University, and a 2005 graduate of West Virginia University College of Law. Before his appointment, he owned his own law practice in Clay County and served clients throughout central West Virginia.
He has been married to his high school sweetheart, Carrie Asbury, since 1995, and they have four children and six grandchildren. The couple actively serve in Fairview Baptist Temple in Clay, and Judge Asbury is an outdoor enthusiast.