[5] After serving a two-year term as law clerk to James R. Browning, Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, Wilson joined the law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore as an associate in 1986.

Wilson was also the chair of the Neighborhood Defender Services of Harlem, providing legal representation to indigent residents of New York.

[4] On March 24, 2023, Wilson was selected as a finalist under consideration for appointment to the New York Court of Appeals, this time for the position of chief judge following the retirement of Chief Judge Janet DiFiore and the subsequent rejection of Justice Hector LaSalle's nomination to that seat by the New York State Senate.

[7] On April 10, 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul announced Wilson's nomination for Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals.

[8] On April 18, the New York State Senate confirmed Wilson as Chief Judge by a vote of 40–19.