06.20.24

Durbin: Judge Maldonado Is An Accomplished Litigator & A Distinguished Jurist Who Will Be A Great Asset To The Seventh Circuit

In a speech on the Senate floor, Durbin urges his Senate colleagues to advance the nomination of Judge Maldonado to the Seventh Circuit; if confirmed, she will be the first Hispanic judge to serve on the Seventh Circuit

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today called on his colleagues to advance the nomination of Judge Nancy L. Maldonado to be the United States Circuit Judge for the Seventh Circuit.  If confirmed, Judge Maldonado would be the first Hispanic judge to ever serve on the Seventh Circuit.

Judge Maldonado currently serves as a United States District Court Judge for the Northern District of Illinois.  In July 2022, the Senate confirmed Judge Maldonado to this position on a bipartisan vote of 53-45. 

Durbin said, “Later today the Senate will vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the nomination of Judge Nancy Maldonado to be a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.  She is an accomplished litigator and a distinguished jurist who will be a great asset to the Seventh Circuit.”

After graduating from Harvard College and Columbia Law School, Judge Maldonado clerked for U.S. District Judge Rubén Castillo, an esteemed jurist on the Northern District of Illinois.  Following her clerkship, Judge Maldonado spent nearly 20 years at a firm specializing in plaintiff-side employment, civil rights, and fraud matters.  Over the course of her career, she tried several cases to verdict, judgment, or final decision.

“In addition, she [Judge Maldonado] was appointed by the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office in 2010 to serve as a Special Assistant State’s Attorney, tasked with investigating fraud.  And from 2019 to 2022, she was appointed by the Illinois Attorney General to serve as a consent decree monitor in two matters, and as a Special Assistant Attorney General to investigate consumer fraud,” Durbin continued.  “In 2022, the Senate confirmed Judge Maldonado on a bipartisan vote to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.  Since her confirmation, despite some of the things that have been said incorrectly on the floor, Judge Maldonado has presided over almost 1,000 cases, ruled on thousands of motions, and issued approximately 300 substantive decisions as a District Court Judge.  Notably, Judge Maldonado has never been reversed by a reviewing court.  This shows that she carefully resolves cases in a way that ensures that litigants feel they’ve been treated fairly in the courtroom.”

Durbin concluded, “She [Judge Maldonado] has my strong support, as well as the support of her other home-state Senator, Senator Duckworth.  She received a unanimous rating of ‘Well Qualified’ from the American Bar Association… She has shown over and over again she has a reputation of integrity, professional competence, and judicial temperament.  Judge Maldonado also has broad support from across the legal community, from law enforcement [to] labor unions, as well as the National Education Association.  I urge my colleagues to support her nomination.”

Video of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Audio of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Footage of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.

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