[1][failed verification] Holmes earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, in 1973 and a Juris Doctor from the University of Arkansas School of Law in 1978.

[6] From 1976 to 1978 he served as a part time investigator for the Washington County Public Defender's Office in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

[3] From 2001 until his appointment to the federal bench, Holmes worked in private legal practice in Fort Smith.

[3][5] In December 2009, Arkansas senators Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln recommended Holmes to become a federal district judge.

On April 28, 2010, President Obama nominated Holmes to the seat on the Western District of Arkansas that was vacated when Judge Robert T. Dawson assumed senior status on August 14, 2009.