Brett Kavanaugh
Brett M. Kavanaugh (born February 12, 1965 in Washington, DC) is a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He is also a former Staff Secretary in the Executive Office of the President of the United States.
Nomination and confirmation
President George W. Bush first nominated Kavanaugh to the D.C. Circuit on July 25, 2003, but his nomination was stalled in the Senate for nearly three years. The Senate Judiciary Committee recommended confirmation on a 10-8 party-line vote on May 11, 2006, and Kavanaugh was thereafter confirmed 57-36 by the U.S. Senate on May 26, 2006. On June 1, 2006, he was officially sworn in by Justice Anthony Kennedy, for whom he had previously clerked, during a special Rose Garden ceremony at the White House[1]. Kavanaugh began hearing cases on September 11, 2006 and had his formal investiture on September 27 at the Prettyman Courthouse.
Kavanaugh's first published opinion was released on November 17, 2006. He authored the opinion of the court for a unanimous three-judge panel in the case of National Fuel Gas Supply Corp. v. FERC.
Kavanaugh is Bush's fourth appointment to the D.C. Circuit. He replaced Judge Laurence H. Silberman, who took Senior status in November 2000.
Background
Kavanaugh was born on February 12, 1965 in Washington, D.C., and raised in Bethesda, Maryland, the son of Edward and Martha Kavanaugh. He is a Roman Catholic and graduated from the Georgetown Preparatory School before going to Yale College.
He received his B.A. from Yale and his law degree from Yale Law School, where he served as Notes Editor of the Yale Law Journal. He is married to Ashley Estes, a native of Abilene, Texas who served as Personal Secretary to the President, and they have one daughter.
Kavanaugh clerked for Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, as well as Judge Alex Kozinski of the Ninth Circuit and Judge Walter Stapleton of the Third Circuit. Prior to his Supreme Court clerkship, Kavanaugh earned a one-year fellowship in the Office of the Solicitor General of the United States, Kenneth Starr. The Solicitor General's office represents the United States before the Supreme Court. Kavanaugh has argued both civil and criminal matters before the Supreme Court and appellate courts throughout the country.
Prior to his appointment to the federal bench, Kavanaugh served as Assistant to the President and Staff Secretary. In that capacity, he was responsible for coordinating all documents to and from the President. He previously served for two years as Senior Associate Counsel and Associate Counsel to the President. In that capacity, he worked on the numerous constitutional, legal, and ethical issues handled by that office.
Before becoming part of the Bush White House, Kavanaugh was a partner at the law firm of
In July 2007 two Senators accused Kavanaugh of "misleading" the Senate committee during his nomination stemming from the Bush White House detention policy.[3]
Footnotes
- ^ Associated Press, June 1, 2006, "President Celebrates Judge's Swearing-In" by Deb Riechmann
See also
List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States
External links
- Federal Judicial Center Profile
- National Fuel Gas Supply Corp. v. FERC (first opinion authored by Kavanaugh)PDF (164 KiB)
- White House Bio
- Brett Kavanaugh Resume (USDOJ)
- Article in Legal Times (March 7, 2006)
- Link to transcript of first Senate hearing (April 27, 2004)
- Report of People For the American Way in Opposition to the Confirmation of Brett M. KavanaughPDF (87.6 KiB)
| Preceded by Laurence H. Silberman |
Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C.
Circuit 2006-present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
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