Justin Walker | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit | |
| Assumed office September 2, 2020 | |
| Appointed by | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Thomas B. Griffith |
| Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky | |
| In office October 25, 2019 – September 2, 2020 | |
| Appointed by | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Joseph H. McKinley Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Benjamin Beaton |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Justin Reed Walker 1982 (age 43–44) Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | Anne |
| Children | 1 |
| Education | Duke University (BA) Harvard University (JD) |
Justin Reed Walker (born 1982)[1] is an American attorney and jurist serving as aUnited States circuit judge of theU.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit since 2020. He was a United States district judge of theU.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky from 2019 to 2020 and a professor of law at theUniversity of Louisville from 2015 to 2019.
Walker was born and raised inLouisville, Kentucky.[2] He was named afterJustin Hayward, thefront man for the musical groupThe Moody Blues.[3] His father is Terry Martin Walker, areal estate appraiser. His mother, Deborah, and father divorced in 1985 after nine years of marriage. Walker says that he was raised by a "a single working mom" who "made indescribable sacrifices to provide me, the first in my family to graduate from college, with the opportunities she didn’t have herself." Terry Walker claims to have also raised Justin, but Justin cut ties from his father once he moved to college. The relationship is still estranged despite attempts from Terry Walker.[3] His step-grandfather, Norton Cohen, was president of the Acme Paper Stock Company and a prominent member of Louisville'sJewish community, while his maternal grandfather, Frank R. Metts, was a millionaire real estate broker whoThe New York Times characterized as a "power broker in Kentucky."[3]
Walker grew up in aDemocratic household, though his mother had supportedRepublicanMitch McConnell when Walker was 8 years old.[3][4] Walker became active inRepublican politics at an early age. While a student at Louisville'sSt. Xavier High School, Walker's step-grandfather arranged to have him interviewMitch McConnell for a class paper, and Walker laterinterned for McConnell as a college student.[3]
After high school, Walker studiedpolitical science atDuke University, graduating in 2004 with aBachelor of Arts,summa cum laude, andPhi Beta Kappa membership. In 2003, Walker studied atNew College, Oxford.[1] From 2005 to 2006, Walker was aspeechwriter forU.S. Secretary of DefenseDonald Rumsfeld. He then attendedHarvard Law School, where he was a notes editor on theHarvard Law Review. He graduated in 2009 with aJuris Doctor,magna cum laude.[5][6]
After law school, Walker spent one year in private practice at the law firmGibson Dunn. He was alaw clerk to then-judgeBrett Kavanaugh of the D.C. Circuit from 2010 to 2011 and to justiceAnthony Kennedy of theU.S. Supreme Court from 2011 to 2012.[7][8][9]
After his clerkships, Walker returned to Gibson Dunn from 2012 to 2013. During the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation hearings for the Supreme Court, Walker gave 119 interviews to the media defending Kavanaugh, and gave several paid speeches to theFederalist Society.[3] He has been a member of theFederalist Society since 2006.[9][1]
From 2015 to 2019, Walker was a professor at theUniversity of Louisville School of Law, where he taughtlegal writing.[10] In July 2018, Walker had a paper published inThe George Washington Law Review reflecting on President Trump's dismissal ofFBI DirectorJames Comey and arguing, "calls for an independentF.B.I. are misguided and dangerous... the F.B.I. must not operate as an independent agency. It must be accountable to the President."[3]
On June 19, 2019, PresidentDonald Trump announced his intent to nominate Walker to serve as aUnited States district judge for theUnited States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky. Walker was nominated to the seat vacated by JudgeJoseph H. McKinley Jr., who assumedsenior status on June 9, 2019.[11] TheAmerican Bar Association (ABA) rated Walker "not qualified,"[12] saying that Walker "has a very substantial gap, namely the absence of any significant trial experience."[13] The ABA stated that "Mr. Walker does not meet the minimum professional competence standard necessary to perform the responsibilities required by the high office of a federal district court judge."[14]
On June 24, 2019, his nomination was sent to the Senate. On July 31, 2019, a hearing on his nomination was held before theSenate Judiciary Committee.[15] On October 17, 2019, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 12–10 vote.[16] On October 24, 2019, theUnited States Senate invokedcloture on his nomination by a 50–39 vote[17] and later that day his nomination was confirmed by a 50–41 vote.[18] He received his judicial commission on October 25, 2019. His service terminated on September 2, 2020, due to elevation to the court of appeals.[19]
In April 2020, Walker blockedLouisvilleMayorGreg Fischer from implementing an order preventing drive-in church services onEaster to prevent the spread of thecoronavirus. Walker compared the order to "the pages of adystopian novel", and said that Fischer "criminalized the communal celebration ofEaster".[4]Vox described Walker's opinion as "oddly partisan", noting that there was no actual ban on drive-in church services,[20] and that Fischer had twice attempted to contact the court to communicate this fact, which would have rendered the case moot.[21]The Volokh Conspiracy described the opinion's rhetoric as "over-the-top"; the decision irrelevantly listed deceased former Klan members affiliated with the Democratic Party.[22][20] In August 2020, Walker ruled that photographer Chelsey Nelson is not bound by theLouisville Fairness Ordinance and cannot be compelled to photograph same-sex weddings, which she opposes due to her religious beliefs.[23]
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On April 3, 2020, President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Walker to serve as Circuit Judge on theUnited States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.[24] On May 4, 2020, his nomination was sent to the Senate. President Trump nominated Walker to the seat being vacated by JudgeThomas B. Griffith, who retired on September 1, 2020.[25] According toThe New York Times, Walker's nomination was handpicked by Senate Majority LeaderMitch McConnell.[3] Walker has been described as McConnell'sprotégé.[4] In early March 2020, McConnell flew to Kentucky to participate in an investiture ceremony for Walker.[4] At the time of his nomination, Walker had no trial experience and had less than six months of experience as a judge.[3] On May 5, 2020, theAmerican Bar Association rated Walker as "Well-Qualified" to serve on the Circuit Court. The ABA sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee explaining their rating after deeming Walker "Not Qualified" when he was nominated for his district court judgeship. The letter said "the Standing Committee believes that Judge Walker possesses a keen intellect, and his writing ability is exemplary. Judge Walker also has significant appellate experience, having clerked for both the D.C. Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States. Additionally, since our last rating, Judge Walker has served as a federal trial judge."[26][4][27] On May 6, 2020, a hearing on his nomination was held before theSenate Judiciary Committee.[28] On June 4, 2020, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 12–10 vote.[29] On June 17, 2020, the Senate invokedcloture on his nomination by a 52–46 vote.[30] On June 18, 2020, his nomination was confirmed by a 51–42 vote.[31] He received his judicial commission on September 2, 2020.[19]
Walker is married to Anne Walker and has one child.[32]
| Legal offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Judge of theUnited States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky 2019–2020 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit 2020–present | Incumbent |