Mary McElroy
Mary S. McElroy is a judge on theUnited States District Court for the District of Rhode Island. On April 12, 2018, PresidentDonald Trump (R) nominated McElroy to a seat on this court.[1] TheU.S. Senate confirmed McElroy by voice vote on September 11, 2019.[2] She received commission on September 30, 2019.[3] To see a full list of judges appointed byDonald Trump,click here.
TheUnited States District Court for the District of Rhode Island is one of 94U.S. District Courts. They are the generaltrial courts of theUnited States federal courts. To learn more about the court,click here.
Previously, on September 8, 2015, PresidentBarack Obama (D) nominated McElroy to theUnited States District Court for the District of Rhode Island.[4] On January 3, 2017, McElroy's nomination was returned to President Obama at thesine die adjournment of the114th Congress.[5]
McElroy was a public defender for the Rhode Island Public Defender's Office from 2012 to 2019.[6]
Judicial nominations and appointments
United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island (2019-present)
On April 12, 2018, PresidentDonald Trump (R) nominated McElroy to a seat on theUnited States District Court for the District of Rhode Island.[1] TheU.S. Senate confirmed McElroy by voice vote on September 11, 2019.[2] To read more about the federal nominations process,click here.
 |
| Nominee Information |
| Name: Mary McElroy |
| Court:United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island |
| Progress |
| Confirmed 517 days after nomination. |
 ANominated: April 12, 2018 |
| AABA Rating:Unanimously qualified |
| Questionnaire:Questionnaire |
| AHearing: No hearing held |
| QFRs:(2015) QFRs(Hover over QFRs to read more) |
| AReported: October 11, 2018 (first) June 20, 2019 (second) |
| AConfirmed: September 11, 2019 |
| AVote: Voice vote |
Confirmation vote
The U.S. Senate confirmed McElroy on September 11, 2019, by voice vote.[2]
Change in Senate rules
McElroy was confirmed to a U.S. District Court under a new precedent the Senate established.
On April 3, 2019, theU.S. Senate voted 51-48 in favor of a change to chamber precedent lowering the maximum time allowed for debate on executive nominees to posts below the Cabinet level and on nominees todistrict court judgeships from 30 hours after invokingcloture to two.[7]
The change was passed under a procedure, often referred to as thenuclear option, that requires 51 votes rather than 60.[8]
It was the third use of thenuclear option in Senate history. In 2013, it was used to eliminate the 60-vote threshold to confirm presidential nominees, except those to theSupreme Court. In 2017, it was used to eliminate the 60-vote threshold required to confirm Supreme Court nominees.[9] For more, seeFilibuster and reconciliation in the United States Congress.
Senate Judiciary Committee vote
On October 11, 2018, theSenate Judiciary Committee voted 19-2 to advance McElroy's nomination to the full Senate.[10] The committee voted a second time, 19-3, on June 20, 2019, to advance McElroy's nomination to the full Senate.[11]
Nomination
On April 12, 2018, PresidentDonald Trump (R) nominated McElroy to a seat on theUnited States District Court for the District of Rhode Island. McElroy was nominated to succeed JudgeMary Lisi, who assumedsenior status on October 1, 2015.[1]
At thesine die adjournment of the115th Congress on January 3, 2019, the Senate returned McElroy's nomination to the president.[1][12]
Trump announced his intent to renominate McElroy on April 8, 2019.[13] The second nomination was officially sent to the Senate on May 21, 2019.[14]
TheAmerican Bar Association unanimously rated McElroyqualified for the position.[15] To read more about ABA ratings,click here.
United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island (2015)
On September 8, 2015, PresidentBarack Obama (D) nominated McElroy to theUnited States District Court for the District of Rhode Island.[4] To read more about the federal nominations process,click here.
Senate Judiciary Committee hearing
On December 9, 2015, theSenate Judiciary Committee held hearings on McElroy's nomination. The committee voted by voice vote to advance her nomination to the fullU.S. Senate on January 28, 2016.[5][16]
- Click here to access McElroy's committee questionnaire.
- Click here to access McElroy's questions for the record.
Nomination
PresidentBarack Obama (D) nominated McElroy on September 8, 2015. McElroy was nominated to succeed JudgeMary Lisi, who assumedsenior status on October 1, 2015.[5]
At thesine die adjournment of the114th Congress on January 3, 2017, the Senate returned McElroy's nomination to the president.[5][12]
TheAmerican Bar Association unanimously rated McElroyqualified for the position.[17] To read more about ABA ratings,click here.
Early life and education
McElroy was born in 1965 inProvidence, Rhode Island. McElroy earned her B.A. from Providence College in 1987 and herJ.D. from Suffolk University Law School in 1992.[6][4]
Professional career
- 2019-present: Judge,U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island
- 2012-2019: Public defender, Rhode Island Public Defender's Office
- 2006-2012: Assistant federal public defender, Federal Public Defender Office,District of Massachusetts,District of New Hampshire andDistrict of Rhode Island
- 1994-2006: Assistant Rhode Island public defender, Rhode Island Public Defender's Office
- 1993-1994: Associate, Tate and Elias LLC, Providence,Rhode Island
- 1992-1993: Law clerk, Honorable Donald F. Shea,Rhode Island Supreme Court[4]
Awards and associations
Awards
- 2015: Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless Advocacy Award[6]
Associations
- Member, Federal Bar Association, Rhode Island Chapter
- Member, Rhode Island Bar Association
- 2014-present: Member, National Association of Public Defense
- 2013-present: Member, Rhode Island Attorney General's Criminal Justice Hall of Fame Committee
- 2012-present: Member, Rhode Island Criminal Justice Policy Board
- 1996-present: Member, Rhode Island Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
- 2012-2014: President
- 2008-2010: Communications secretary
- 1998-2000: Corresponding secretary
- 2013-2016: Municipal Court Incarceration Working Group[6]
About the court
| District of Rhode Island |
|---|
| First Circuit |
 |
| Judgeships |
| Posts: 3 |
| Judges: 3 |
| Vacancies: 0 |
| Judges |
| Chief:John J. McConnell, Jr. |
| Active judges:Melissa DuBose,John McConnell,Mary McElroy Senior judges: |
TheUnited States District Court for the District of Rhode Island is one of 94United States district courts. When decisions of the court are appealed, they are appealed to theUnited States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit based in downtownBoston at the John Joseph Moakley Federal Courthouse.
The District of Rhode Island hasoriginal jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.
The jurisdiction of the District of Rhode Island consists of all thecounties in the state ofRhode Island.
To read opinions published by this court, clickhere.
The federal nomination process
Federal judges are nominated by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate. There are multiple steps to the process:
- The president nominates an individual for a judicial seat.
- The nominee fills out a questionnaire and is reviewed by theSenate Judiciary Committee.
- The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing with the nominee, questioning them about things like their judicial philosophy, past rulings or opinions, etc.
- As part of this process, the committee sends ablue slip to senators from the home state in which the judicial nomination was received, allowing them to express their approval or disapproval of the nominee.
- After the hearing, the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote to approve or return the nominee.
- If approved, the nominee is voted on by the full Senate.
- If the Committee votes to return the nominee to the president, the president has the opportunity to re-nominate the individual.
- The Senate holds a vote on the candidate.
- If the Senate confirms the nomination, the nominee receives a commission to serve a lifelong position as a federal judge.
- If the Senate does not confirm the nomination, that nominee does not become a judge.
See also
- United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island
- United States Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit
External links
Officeholder United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island |
- Biography from theFederal Judicial Center
- United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island
- United States Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit
Footnotes
- ↑1.01.11.21.3Congress.gov, "PN1840 — Mary S. McElroy — The Judiciary," accessed April 9, 2019
- ↑2.02.12.2Congress.gov, "PN779 — Mary S. McElroy — The Judiciary," accessed September 12, 2019
- ↑Federal Judicial Center, "McElroy, Mary Susan," accessed October 3, 2019
- ↑4.04.14.24.3The White House, "President Obama Nominates Three to Serve on the United States District Courts," September 8, 2015
- ↑5.05.15.25.3United States Congress, "PN 775 — Mary S. McElroy — The Judiciary," accessed January 3, 2017
- ↑6.06.16.26.3U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, "Questionnaire for judicial nominees: Mary McElroy," accessed April 9, 2019
- ↑The Hill, "GOP triggers 'nuclear option' to speed up Trump picks," April 3, 2019
- ↑Axios, "Senate GOP invokes 'nuclear option' to speed up confirmations of Trump nominees," April 3, 2019
- ↑NBC News, "McConnell to use 'nuclear option' to confirm lower-level nominees," April 2, 2019
- ↑Senate Judiciary Committee, "Results of the Executive Business Meeting," October 11, 2018
- ↑U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, "Results of Executive Business Meeting," June 20, 2019
- ↑12.012.1Under Senate Rule XXXI, paragraph 6 of the Standing Rules of the Senate, pending nominations are returned to the president if the Senate adjournssine die or recesses for more than 30 days.Congressional Research Service, "Senate Consideration of Presidential Nominations: Committee and Floor Procedure," April 11, 2017
- ↑White House, "President Donald J. Trump Announces Judicial Nominations," April 8, 2019
- ↑White House, "Twelve Nominations Sent to the Senate," May 21, 2019
- ↑American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III and Article IV judicial nominees, 115th Congress," accessed October 11, 2018
- ↑U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, "Results of the Executive Business Meeting," January 28, 2016
- ↑American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III and Article IV judicial nominees, 114th Congress," accessed April 9, 2019
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - | United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island 2019-Present | Succeeded by - |
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Thomas Parker •Elizabeth Branch •Neil Gorsuch •Amul Thapar •David C. Nye •John K. Bush •Kevin Newsom •Timothy J. Kelly •Ralph Erickson •Scott Palk •Trevor McFadden •Joan Larsen •Amy Coney Barrett •Allison Eid •Stephanos Bibas •Donald Coggins Jr. •Dabney Friedrich •Greg Katsas •Steven Grasz •Don Willett •James Ho •William L. Campbell Jr. •David Stras •Tilman E. Self III •Karen Gren Scholer •Terry A. Doughty •Claria Horn Boom •John Broomes •Rebecca Grady Jennings •Kyle Duncan •Kurt Engelhardt •Michael B. Brennan •Joel Carson •Robert Wier •Fernando Rodriguez Jr. •Annemarie Carney Axon • | ||
| 2018 | Andrew Oldham •Amy St. Eve •Michael Scudder •John Nalbandian •Mark Bennett •Andrew Oldham •Britt Grant •Colm Connolly •Maryellen Noreika •Jill Otake •Jeffrey Beaverstock •Emily Coody Marks •Holly Lou Teeter •Julius Richardson •Charles B. Goodwin •Barry Ashe •Stan Baker •A. Marvin Quattlebaum Jr. •Terry F. Moorer •Susan Baxter •William Jung •Alan Albright •Dominic Lanza •Eric Tostrud •Charles Williams •Nancy E. Brasel •James Sweeney •Kari A. Dooley •Marilyn J. Horan •Robert Summerhays •Brett Kavanaugh •David Porter •Liles Burke •Michael Juneau •Peter Phipps •Lance Walker •Richard Sullivan •Eli Richardson •Ryan Nelson •Chad F. Kenney, Sr. •Susan Brnovich •William M. Ray, II •Jeremy Kernodle •Thomas Kleeh •J.P. Hanlon •Mark Norris •Jonathan Kobes •Michael Brown •David Counts | ||
| 2019 | Eric Miller •Chad Readler •Eric Murphy •Neomi Rao •Paul Matey •Allison Jones Rushing •Bridget S. Bade •Roy Altman •Patrick Wyrick •Holly Brady •David Morales •Andrew Brasher •J. Campbell Barker •Rodolfo Ruiz •Daniel Domenico •Michael Truncale •Michael Park •Joseph Bianco •Raúl Arias-Marxuach •Daniel Collins •Joshua Wolson •Wendy Vitter •Kenneth Kiyul Lee •Kenneth Bell •Stephen Clark •Howard Nielson •Rodney Smith •Jean-Paul Boulee •Sarah Daggett Morrison •Rossie Alston •Pamela A. Barker •Corey Maze •Greg Guidry •Matthew Kacsmaryk •Allen Winsor •Carl Nichols •James Cain, Jr. •Tom Barber •J. Nicholas Ranjan •Clifton L. Corker •Peter Phipps •Daniel Bress •Damon Leichty •Wendy W. Berger •Peter Welte •Michael Liburdi •William Shaw Stickman •Mark Pittman •Karin J. Immergut •Jason Pulliam •Brantley Starr •Brian Buescher •James Wesley Hendrix •Timothy Reif •Martha Pacold •Sean Jordan •Mary Rowland •John M. Younge •Jeff Brown •Ada Brown •Steven Grimberg •Stephanie A. Gallagher •Steven Seeger •Stephanie Haines •Mary McElroy •David J. Novak •Frank W. Volk •Charles Eskridge •Rachel Kovner •Justin Walker •T. Kent Wetherell •Danielle Hunsaker •Lee Rudofsky •Jennifer Philpott Wilson • William Nardini •Steven Menashi •Robert J. Luck •Eric Komitee •Douglas Cole •John Sinatra •Sarah Pitlyk •Barbara Lagoa •Richard Myers II •Sherri Lydon •Patrick Bumatay •R. Austin Huffaker • Miller Baker •Anuraag Singhal •Karen Marston •Jodi Dishman •Mary Kay Vyskocil •Matthew McFarland •John Gallagher •Bernard Jones •Kea Riggs •Robert J. Colville •Stephanie Dawkins Davis •Gary R. Brown •David Barlow • Lewis Liman | ||
| 2020 | Lawrence VanDyke •Daniel Traynor •John Kness •Joshua Kindred •Philip Halpern •Silvia Carreno-Coll •Scott Rash •John Heil •Anna Manasco •John L. Badalamenti •Drew Tipton •Andrew Brasher •Cory Wilson •Scott Hardy •David Joseph •Matthew Schelp •John Cronan •Justin Walker •Brett H. Ludwig •Christy Wiegand •Thomas Cullen •Diane Gujarati •Stanley Blumenfeld •Mark Scarsi •John Holcomb •Stephen P. McGlynn •Todd Robinson •Hala Jarbou •David Dugan •Iain D. Johnston •Franklin U. Valderrama •John Hinderaker •Roderick Young •Michael Newman •Aileen Cannon •James Knepp •Kathryn Kimball Mizelle • Benjamin Beaton • Kristi Johnson •Toby Crouse •Philip Calabrese •Taylor McNeel •Thomas Kirsch •Stephen Vaden •Katherine Crytzer •Fernando Aenlle-Rocha •Charles Atchley •Joseph Dawson | ||
| 2025 | Whitney Hermandorfer •Joshua Divine •Cristian M. Stevens •Zachary Bluestone •Emil Bove •Edward Artau •Kyle Dudek•Maria Lanahan•Jennifer Mascott•Anne-Leigh Gaylord Moe•Chad Meredith•Harold Mooty•Jordan Pratt•Edmund LaCour•Bill Lewis•Eric Tung•Rebecca Taibleson•Joshua D. Dunlap•Bill Mercer•Susan Rodriguez•Robert Chamberlin•Matthew Orso•David Bragdon•Jimmy Maxwell•Lindsey Freeman•William J. Crain | ||
| 2026 | |||
 | State ofRhode Island Providence (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections | What's on my ballot? |Elections in 2026 |How to vote |How to run for office |Ballot measures |
| Government | Who represents me? |U.S. President |U.S. Congress |Federal courts |State executives |State legislature |State and local courts |Counties |Cities |School districts |Public policy |
- Pages using DynamicPageList3 parser function
- Appointed by Donald Trump
- Confirmed 2019
- Federal Article III judges
- Federal judge, United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island
- Federal judiciary nominee, April 2018
- Rhode Island
- Federal judiciary nominee, April, 2018
- Federal judge, District of Rhode Island
- Returned nominee 2019
- Federal judiciary nominee, September 2015
- Returned nominee 2017
- Former Federal court nominees
