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Sarah Pitlyk

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Sarah Pitlyk

Nonpartisan

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri

Tenure

2019 - Present

Years in position

Education

Bachelor's

Boston College, 1999

Other

Fulbright Scholar

Law

Yale Law School, 2008

Graduate

Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, 2006

Personal

Birthplace

Indianapolis, IN

Profession

Special counsel

Contact

Official website

Sarah Elizabeth Pitlyk is a judge on theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. On September 9, 2019, PresidentDonald Trump (R) nominated Pitlyk to a seat on this court. TheU.S. Senate confirmed Pitlyk on December 4, 2019, by a 49-44 vote.^[1] She received commission on December 5, 2019.^[2] To see a full list of judges appointed byDonald Trump,click here.

TheUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri is one of 94United States district courts. They are the generaltrial courts of theUnited States federal courts. To learn more about the Eastern District of Missouri,click here.

Pitlyk was a special counsel at the Thomas More Society from 2017 to 2019.^[3]

Pitlyk was included on PresidentDonald Trump’s (R) list of 20 potentialU.S. Supreme Court nominees released on September 9, 2020.^[4] President Trump (R) nominatedAmy Coney Barrett to the seat on September 26, 2020. For more information on the 2020 Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of former JusticeRuth Bader Ginsburg on September 18, 2020,click here.

Judicial nominations and appointments

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri

See also:Federal judges nominated by Donald Trump

On September 9, 2019, PresidentDonald Trump (R) nominated Pitlyk to a seat on theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. TheU.S. Senate confirmed Pitlyk on December 4, 2019, by a 49-44 vote.^[1] To read more about the federal nominations process,click here.

Nomination Tracker

Nominee Information
Name: Sarah Pitlyk
Court:United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
Progress
Confirmed 86 days after nomination.
ANominated: September 9, 2019
AABA Rating:Unanimously not qualified
Questionnaire:Questionnaire
AHearing: September 25, 2019

QFRs:QFRs(Hover over QFRs to read more)

AReported: October 31, 2019
AConfirmed: December 4, 2019
AVote: 49-44

Confirmation vote

The U.S. Senate confirmed Pitlyk on December 4, 2019, on a vote of 49-44.^[1] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website,click here.

Pitlyk confirmation vote (December 4, 2019)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	0	42	3
Republican	49	1	3
Independent	0	1	1
Total	49	44	7

Change in Senate rules

See also:

Filibuster and reconciliation in the United States Congress

Federal judges nominated by Donald Trump

United States federal courts

Pitlyk 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.^[5]

The change was passed under a procedure, often referred to as thenuclear option, that requires 51 votes rather than 60.^[6]

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.^[7] For more, seeFilibuster and reconciliation in the United States Congress.

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

Pitlyk had her hearing before theSenate Judiciary Committee on September 25, 2019.^[8] The committee voted 12-10 on October 31 to advance her nomination to the full Senate.^[9]

Nomination

On August 14, 2019, PresidentDonald Trump (R) announced his intent to nominate Pitlyk to a seat on theUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.^[3] The U.S. Senate officially received the nomination on September 9.^[1]

Pitlyk was nominated to succeed JudgeCatherine Perry, who assumedsenior status December 31, 2018.^[1]

Missouri SenatorsRoy Blunt (R) andJosh Hawley (R) voiced support for the nomination on Twitter.^[10]^[11]^[12]

Blunt said:

“

Today, the White House announced Sarah Pitlyk’s nomination to serve as a US District Court Judge for the Eastern District of MO. She’s an experienced attorney who is dedicated to defending the Constitution. I’m proud to support her nomination & urge my colleagues to do the same.^[11]^[13]

”

Hawley said:

“

.@realDonaldTrump has nominated Sarah Pitlyk to serve on the District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. She’s a superb choice — an accomplished attorney, a formidable intellect, and a proud mom. Can’t wait to see her before the Judiciary Committee^[12]^[13]

”

TheAmerican Bar Association unanimously rated Pitlyknot qualified for the position.^[14] To read more about ABA ratings,click here.

The chairman of the ABA's Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary, William Hubbard, wrote in a statement to Sens.Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) andDianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) that the committee thought Pitlyk did "not have the requisite trial or litigation experience or its equivalent" for the position.^[15]

During her committee hearing on September 25, 2019, Sen.Hawley (R-Mo.) questioned the rating. He said the ABA would have provided aqualified orwell qualified rating if Pitlyk "had been advocating or representing clients who advocated more traditionally liberal positions."^[16]

Early life and education

Pitlyk was born in 1977 inIndianapolis, Indiana. She earned her B.A.,summa cum laude, in philosophy from Boston College in 1999. In 2001, she received an M.A.,magna cum laude, in applied ethics from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium, where she studied as a Fulbright Scholar. She also received an M.A. in philosophy from Georgetown University in 2006. Pitlyk earned herJ.D. from Yale Law School in 2008.^[17]

Professional career

2019-present: Judge,U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
2017-2019: Special counsel, Thomas More Society
2013-2016: Associate, Clark & Sauer LLC
2011-2012: Associate, Covington & Burling LLP
2010-2011: Law clerk to JudgeBrett Kavanaugh,United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
2008-2010: Associate, Covington & Burling LLP^[17]

Associations

Missouri Bar Association
District of Columbia Bar Association
St. Louis Lawyers for Life
American Bar Association
The Federalist Society^[17]

Possible Donald Trump nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court

2020

See also:Supreme Court vacancy, 2020

On September 18, 2020, JusticeRuth Bader Ginsburg died, leaving a vacancy on the Supreme Court. The following day, PresidentDonald Trump (R) said he would nominate a woman to replace Ginsburg.^[18] On September 26, 2020, President Trump nominatedAmy Coney Barrett to fill the vacancy.^[19]

Pitlyk was among the women President Trump had previously identified as a potential Supreme Court nominee before nominatingAmy Coney Barrett. President Trump released four lists of potential U.S. Supreme Court nominees; twoin 2016, onein 2017, and onein 2020. Clickhere for more information on the vacancy and nomination process.

About the court

Eastern District of Missouri
Eighth Circuit

Judgeships
Posts: 9
Judges: 9
Vacancies: 0
Judges
Chief:Stephen Clark
Active judges: Henry Autrey,Zachary Bluestone,Stephen Clark,Joshua Divine,Maria Lanahan,Sarah Pitlyk,Matthew Schelp,Cristian M. Stevens,Brian C. Wimes Senior judges: Edward Filippine,Audrey Fleissig,Jean Hamilton,Nanette Laughrey,Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr.,Catherine Perry,John A. Ross,Rodney Sippel,E. Richard Webber

TheUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri is one of 94United States district courts. The district operates out of courthouses inCape Girardeau,St. Louis, andHannibal, Missouri. When decisions of the court are appealed, they are appealed to theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, based in downtownSt. Louis, Missouri, at the Thomas F. Eagleton Federal Courthouse and Building.

The Eastern District of Missouri hasoriginal jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.

The geographic jurisdiction of the Eastern District of Missouri consists of all the followingcounties in the eastern part of the state ofMissouri.

There are three court divisions, each covering the following counties:

TheEastern Division, coveringCrawford,Dent,Franklin,Gasconade,Iron,Jefferson,Lincoln,Maries,Phelps,Saint Charles,Saint Francois,Sainte Genevieve,Saint Louis,Warren, andWashington counties, as well as the City of St. Louis.

TheNorthern Division, coveringAdair,Audrain,Chariton,Clark,Knox,Lewis,Linn,Macon,Marion,Monroe,Montgomery,Pike,Ralls,Randolph,Schuyler,Scotland, andShelby counties.

TheSoutheastern Division, coveringBollinger,Butler,Cape Girardeau,Carter,Dunklin,Madison,Mississippi,New Madrid,Pemiscot,Perry,Reynolds,Ripley,Scott,Shannon,Stoddard, andWayne counties.

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.