Orelia E. Merchant | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York | |
Assumed office May 12, 2023 | |
Appointed by | Joe Biden |
Preceded by | William F. Kuntz II |
Personal details | |
Born | 1971 (age 52–53) The Bronx,New York,U.S. |
Spouse | Karim Camara |
Education | Dillard University (BS) College of William &Mary (MA) Tulane University (JD) |
Orelia Eleta Merchant (born 1971) [1] is an American lawyer who serves as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. She previously served as chief deputy attorney general for state counsel in the New York Attorney General's Office.
Merchant earned a Bachelor of Science degree in physics and mathematics from Dillard University in 1992,a Master of Arts in marine science from the College of William &Mary in 1995,and a Juris Doctor from the Tulane University Law School in 1998. [2]
From 1998 to 2002,Merchant served as Assistant Regional Counsel in the United States Environmental Protection Agency. In 2000 and 2001,Merchant served as a special assistant United States attorney in the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana. Merchant served as an assistant United States attorney in the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York from 2002 to 2016 and executive assistant United States attorney from 2016 to 2019. She joined the New York Attorney General's Office in 2019 and left in 2023 when she became a district court judge. [3]
Merchant was recommended to President Joe Biden by Senator Chuck Schumer. [4] On September 2,2022,President Biden announced his intent to nominate Merchant to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. On September 6,2022,her nomination was sent to the Senate. President Biden nominated Merchant to the seat vacated by Judge William F. Kuntz II,who assumed senior status on January 1,2022. [5] On January 3,2023,her nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI,Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate. She was renominated on January 23,2023. [6] On January 25,2023,a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee. [7] On April 20,2023,her nomination was reported out of committee by a 12–9 vote. [8] On May 2,2023,the Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 51–48 vote. [9] On May 3,2023,her nomination was confirmed by a 51–48 vote. [10] She received her judicial commission on May 12,2023. [11]
Salvador Mendoza Jr. is an American lawyer serving as United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He previously served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington from 2014 to 2022 and as a Washington state court judge from 2002 to 2014.
Florence Yu Pan is an American lawyer who serves as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. She was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia from 2021 to 2022 and a judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia from 2009 to 2021.
Maria Araújo Kahn is an American lawyer who is serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. She previously served as an associate justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court from 2017 to 2023.
Stephanie Dawkins Davis is an American lawyer who is serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. She previously served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan and a former United States magistrate judge of the same court.
Tiffany Patrice Cunningham is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Eunice Cheryl Lee is an American lawyer who serves as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Born in West Germany,she attended Ohio State University and Yale Law School. In 2021,she was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve on the Second Circuit after being nominated by President Joe Biden.
Veronica Sophia Rossman is a Russian-born American lawyer serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.
Sarah Ann Leilani Merriam is an American attorney serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. She is a former United States magistrate judge of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut and former district judge of the same court.
Myrna Pérez is an American lawyer serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. She was previously the director of voting rights at the Brennan Center for Justice.
Holly Aiyisha Thomas is an American attorney serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She previously served as a judge of the Los Angeles County Superior Court from 2018 to 2022.
Jessica Gloria Lynn Clarke is an American lawyer from New York who serves as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Nina Rauh Morrison is an American lawyer who serves as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. As part of her work for the Innocence Project,she had been lead or co-counsel in cases that have freed more than 30 wrongly convicted people from prison and death row.
Arianna Julia Freeman is an American lawyer from Pennsylvania who serves as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
Ana Isabel de Alba is an American attorney who serves as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She previously served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California from 2022 to 2023.
Nusrat Jahan Choudhury is an American lawyer who serves as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
President Joe Biden began his presidency with fewer vacancies to fill than his predecessor. He pledged to nominate people with diverse backgrounds and professional experience;further he pledged to nominate the first black woman to the Supreme Court of the United States.
Anne Marie Nardacci is an American lawyer from New York who is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York.
Doris Lenea Pryor is an American lawyer who has served as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit since 2022. She served as a United States magistrate judge for the Southern District of Indiana from 2018 to 2022.
Kai Niambi Scott is an American attorney who is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. She previously served as a judge on the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas from 2015 to 2023.
Ramon Ernesto Reyes Jr. is an American lawyer who has served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York since 2023. He previously served as a United States magistrate judge of the same court from 2006 to 2023.