Young Appellate Judges

 

Bloomberg Law has Biden Favors Younger Judges in Shift From Previous Democrats

• More than half of President Joe Biden’s federal appellate court appointments so far were in their 40s or younger when they joined the bench, the highest share for any modern Democratic president
• Roughly 53% of Biden appellate appointees turned 49 or younger during the year they received their commissions, and roughly 21% turned 44 or younger, the data shows.
• For comparison, roughly a quarter of Barack Obama’s circuit picks, and about 38% of Bill Clinton’s circuit judges, were under 50 when they joined the bench. Just 5% of Obama’s appellate picks, and about 15% of his choices for district seats, were under 45.
• Biden’s move toward younger judges continues a practice championed by Trump. Nearly two-thirds of the Republican’s appellate judges were 49 or younger the year they received their commission—the highest share of any president in modern history.
• “There is something to be said about the wisdom that comes with a longer term of experience and practice,” said former judge Paul Watford, who was 44 when he joined the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. “I don’t see anything good that comes from nominating people to the bench at a very young age, to be frank with you.”
• “You can’t cause damage on your own on the court of appeals. On the district court, in terms of what happens in your courtroom every day, you’re completely unchecked,” said [former 5th Cir. Judge Gregg] Costa, an Obama appointee to both courts who’s now in private practice.