Timothy Reif
Timothy M. Reif is a judge on theUnited States Court of International Trade. On June 18, 2018, PresidentDonald Trump (R) nominated Reif to a seat on this court.[1] TheU.S. Senate confirmed Reif on August 1, 2019, by voice vote.[2] He received commission on August 8, 2019.[3] To see a full list of judges appointed byDonald Trump,click here.
TheUnited States Court of International Trade is an Article III federal court. It hears only cases involving particular international trade and customs law questions. To learn more about the court,click here.
Reif was a senior advisor to the U.S. Trade Representative from 2017 to 2019.[4]
Judicial nominations and appointments
United States Court of International Trade (2019-present)
On June 18, 2018, PresidentDonald Trump (R) nominated Reif to a seat on theUnited States Court of International Trade.[1] TheU.S. Senate confirmed Reif on August 1, 2019, by voice vote.[2] To read more about the federal nominations process,click here.
 |
| Nominee Information |
| Name: Timothy Reif |
| Court:United States Court of International Trade |
| Progress |
| Confirmed 409 days after nomination. |
 ANominated: June 18, 2018 |
| AABA Rating:Unanimously Well Qualified |
| Questionnaire:Questionnaire |
| AHearing: November 28, 2018 |
| QFRs:QFRs(Hover over QFRs to read more) |
| AReported: February 7, 2019 |
| AConfirmed: August 1, 2019 |
| AVote: Voice vote |
Confirmation vote
The U.S. Senate confirmed Reif on August 1, 2019, by voice vote.[2]
Senate Judiciary Committee hearing
TheSenate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Reif's nomination November 28.[5]
TheSenate Judiciary Committee favorably reported Reif's nomination on February 7, 2019.[6]Click here to see how the committee voted. Reif's nomination was one of 44 that Sen.Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) reported that day.
Nomination
PresidentDonald Trump (R) announced his intent to nominate Reif on June 7, 2018.[7] TheU.S. Senate officially received the nomination on June 18, 2018. Reif was nominated to succeed JudgeRichard Eaton, who assumedsenior status on August 22, 2014.[1]
At thesine die adjournment of the115th Congress on January 3, 2019, the Senate returned Reif's nomination to President Trump.[8] Reif was one of 51 individuals the president re-nominated on January 23, 2019.[9]
TheAmerican Bar Association unanimously rated Reifwell qualified for the position.[10] To read more about ABA ratings,click here.
Education
Reif earned his bachelor's degree, with honors, from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University in 1980. He was a Fulbright Scholar in El Minia, Egypt, in 1980. Reif earned a master's in public administration from Princeton University in 1985. He also obtained aJ.D. from Columbia Law School, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar, in 1985.[4]
Professional career
- 2019-present: Judge,United States Court of International Trade
- 2009-2019: Office of the U.S. Trade Representative
- 2017-2019: Senior advisor to the U.S. Trade Representative
- 2015-2017: Chief Freedom of Information Act Officer and Chief Transparency Officer
- 2009-2017: General counsel
- 1998-2009: Chief international trade counsel,U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means
- 1995-1998: Special international trade counsel, Dewey Ballantine LLP
- 1993-1994: Trade counsel, U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means
- 1989-1993: Office of the U.S. Trade Representative
- 1990-1993: Associate general counsel
- 1989-1990: Assistant general counsel
- 1987-1989: Attorney-advisor, U.S. International Trade Commission
- 1985-1987: Associate, Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy LLP[4]
Noteworthy cases
Tariff orders declared invalid (May 2025)
On May 28, 2025, a unanimous three-judge panel of theUnited States Court of International Trade ruled that several of PresidentDonald Trump's (R) executive orders imposing tariffs were invalid and ordered the administration to stop collecting them. The court ruled that Trump exceeded his authority granted by the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to implementglobal tariffs in April 2025. The panel also ruled that individual tariffs placed onMexico,China, andCanada in February 2025 "fail because they do not deal with the threats set forth in those orders."[11]
White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in a statement about the ruling: "It is not for unelected judges to decide how to properly address a national emergency." Oregon Seretary of StateDan Rayfield (D), one of the plaintiffs in the case, said, "President Trump’s sweeping tariffs were unlawful, reckless, and economically devastating. They triggered retaliatory measures, inflated prices on essential goods, and placed an unfair burden on American families, small businesses and manufacturers."[11]
JudgesJane Restani,Gary Katzmann, andTimothy Reif issued the ruling. Restani was appointed by PresidentRonald Reagan (R), Katzmann was appointed by PresidentBarack Obama (D), and Reif was appointed by Trump. To read the court's full order, clickhere.
The administration appealed the ruling to theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. On May 29, the appeals court agreed to hear the case and issued a stay against the Court of International Trade order.[12]
About the court
| Court of International Trade |
|---|
| Federal Circuit |
 |
| Judgeships |
| Posts: 9 |
| Judges: 8 |
| Vacancies: 1 |
| Judges |
| Chief:Mark A. Barnett |
| Active judges:Miller Baker,Mark A. Barnett,Jennifer Choe Groves,Gary S. Katzmann,Claire R. Kelly,Joseph Laroski,Timothy Reif,Lisa Wang Senior judges: |
TheUnited States Court of International Trade is an Article IIIfederal court. TheCustoms Court Act of 1980 replaced the formerUnited States Customs Court with the United States Court of International Trade. The court sits inNew York City, although it is authorized to sit elsewhere, including in foreign nations.
Appeals from the Court of International Trade are heard by theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which normally sits inWashington, D.C. Further appeals from the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit are heard by theSupreme Court of the United States.[13]
The Court of International Trade has 9 authorized judicial posts. The chief judge of the court isMark A. Barnett, who was appointed by PresidentBarack Obama (D). Three of the judges on the court were appointed by PresidentDonald Trump (R).
The court possesses limited subject matter jurisdiction across the United States. It may hear only cases involving particular international trade and customs law questions. The court hears disputes, such as those involving protests filed withU.S. Customs and Border Protection, decisions regarding Trade Adjustment Assistance by theU.S. Department of Labor orU.S. Department of Agriculture, customs broker licensing, and disputes relating to determinations made by the United States International Trade Commission and theDepartment of Commerce's International Trade Administration regarding anti-dumping and countervailing duties.
Most cases are heard by a single judge. If a case challenges the constitutionality of a U.S. law or has important implications regarding the administration or interpretation of the customs laws, then it may be heard by a three-judge panel.
Although the court maintains its own rules of procedure, they are patterned for the most part on the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The court has held that decisions interpreting the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are "instructive" in interpreting its own rules.[14]
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
External links
Officeholder United States Court of International Trade |
- United States Court of International Trade
- United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
- Profile from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (archived July 2019)
- Judge Reif's biography from theFederal Judicial Center
Footnotes
- ↑1.01.11.2Congress.gov, "PN2147 — Timothy M. Reif — The Judiciary," accessed August 2, 2019
- ↑2.02.12.2Congress.gov, "PN249 — Timothy M. Reif — The Judiciary," accessed August 2, 2019
- ↑Federal Judicial Center, "Reif, Timothy Mark," accessed August 12, 2019
- ↑4.04.14.2Senate Judiciary Committee, "Questionnaire for judicial nominees: Timothy Mark Reif," accessed August 2, 2019
- ↑Committee on the Judiciary, "Nominations," November 28, 2018
- ↑U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, "Results of Executive Business Meeting," February 7, 2019
- ↑WhiteHouse.gov, "President Donald J. Trump Announces Fifteenth Wave of Judicial Nominees, Fourteenth Wave of United States Attorney Nominees, and Ninth Wave of United States Marshal Nominees," June 7, 2018
- ↑Under 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
- ↑WhiteHouse.gov, "Nominations Sent to the Senate," January 23, 2019
- ↑American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III and Article IV judicial nominees, 115th Congress," accessed November 28, 2018
- ↑11.011.1CNBC, "Federal trade court strikes down Trump’s reciprocal tariffs," May 28, 2025
- ↑Bluesky, "Orin Kerr on May 29, 2025," accessed May 29, 2025
- ↑Court of International Trade, "About the Court," accessed May 2, 2021
- ↑Court of International Trade, "About the Court," accessed August 2, 2019
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