Candace Jackson-Akiwumi | |
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| Judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit | |
| Assumed office July 1, 2021 | |
| Appointed by | Joe Biden |
| Preceded by | Joel Flaum |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Candace Rae Jackson 1979 (age 46–47) Norfolk, Virginia, U.S. |
| Relatives | Raymond Alvin Jackson (father) |
| Education | Princeton University (BA) Yale University (JD) |
Candace Rae Jackson-Akiwumi (born 1979)[1] is an American jurist and attorney who has served as aUnited States circuit judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit since July 2021. She was previously a staff attorney at thefederal defender program in the Northern District of Illinois from 2010 to 2020 and a partner at Zuckerman Spaeder inWashington, D.C., from 2020 to 2021.
Jackson-Akiwumi was born inNorfolk, Virginia, to United States District JudgeRaymond Alvin Jackson[2] and former Norfolk General District Court Judge Gwendolyn Jackson.[3] Jackson-Akiwumi received herBachelor of Arts, with honors, fromPrinceton University in 2000 and herJuris Doctor fromYale Law School in 2005.[4] At Yale, she served as a senior editor on theYale Law Journal.[5]
She began her legal career as alaw clerk to JudgeDavid H. Coar of theUnited States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois from 2005 to 2006, and then for JudgeRoger Gregory of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit from 2006 to 2007. She was a litigationassociate atSkadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom inChicago from 2007 to 2010.
From 2010 to 2020, she worked as a staff attorney at thefederal public defender program in the Northern District of Illinois.[6] In 2018, she also co-taught a class in criminal law atNorthwestern University Pritzker School of Law.[1] From 2020 to 2021, she was apartner at Zuckerman Spaeder inWashington, D.C., where she focused on complexcivil litigation,white collar criminal defense, and investigations.[4]
On March 30, 2021, PresidentJoe Biden announced his intent to nominate Jackson-Akiwumi to serve as aUnited States circuit judge for theSeventh Circuit.[4] On April 19, 2021, her nomination was sent to the Senate. President Biden nominated Jackson-Akiwumi to the seat vacated by JudgeJoel Flaum, who assumedsenior status on November 30, 2020.[7] On April 28, 2021, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[8] On May 20, 2021, her nomination was favorably reported by the committee by a 12–10 vote.[9] On June 21, 2021, Majority LeaderChuck Schumer filedcloture on her nomination.[10] On June 23, 2021, theUnited States Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 53–47 vote.[11] On June 24, 2021, her nomination was confirmed by a 53–40 vote.[12] She received her judicial commission on July 1, 2021.[13] She is the second African-American woman (afterAnn Claire Williams)[14] and the first former federal public defender[15] to sit on the Seventh Circuit.
In January 2022,Supreme CourtAssociate JusticeStephen Breyer announced that he would retire at the end of the term.[16][17] Jackson-Akiwumi was included in lists of potential nominees for a Supreme Court appointment under PresidentJoe Biden, who pledged to nominate the first Black woman to the Supreme Court if given the opportunity. Ultimately, Biden nominatedKetanji Brown Jackson, who was confirmed in April of that year.[18][19][20][21]
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.
| Legal offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit 2021–present | Incumbent |