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Amul Thapar

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Amul Thapar
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
Incumbent
Assumed office
May 25, 2017
Appointed byDonald Trump
Preceded byBoyce F. Martin Jr.
Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky
In office
January 4, 2008 – May 30, 2017
Appointed byGeorge W. Bush
Preceded byJoseph Martin Hood
Succeeded byRobert E. Wier
United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky
In office
March 20, 2006 – January 2008
PresidentGeorge W. Bush
Preceded byGregory F. Van Tatenhove
Succeeded byKerry B. Harvey
Personal details
Born
Amul Roger Thapar

(1969-04-29) April 29, 1969 (age 55)
Troy, Michigan, U.S.
EducationBoston College (BS)
University of California, Berkeley (JD)

Amul Roger Thapar (born April 29, 1969) is a United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. He is a former United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky and former United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Thapar was the first South Asian federal judge in American history. He was also President Trump's first Court of Appeals appointment and Trump's second judicial appointment after Justice Neil Gorsuch. Thapar is frequently discussed as a short-lister for the Supreme Court of the United States.

Early life and education

Thapar has lived most of his life in the midwest.[1] He was born in Troy, Michigan to parents who immigrated from India. He was raised in Toledo, Ohio,[2] where his father, Raj Thapar, owns a heating and air-conditioning supply business.[3] Thapar worked for his father's business driving the truck.[4] His mother, Veena Bhalla, owned a restaurant. She sold her successful business after the September 11 attacks and chose to serve as a civilian clinical social worker assigned to assist veterans.[4]

Thapar received a Bachelor of Science degree from Boston College in 1991 and a Juris Doctor from UC Berkeley School of Law in 1994.

Career

Private practice

After law school, Thapar served as a law clerk to S. Arthur Spiegel of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio from 1994 to 1996, and then to Nathaniel R. Jones of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit from 1996 to 1997.[5] He was an adjunct professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Law from 1995 to 1997 and from 2002 to 2006.

Thapar was then an attorney at the law firm of Williams & Connolly in Washington, D.C. from 1997 to 1999[5] where he volunteered to represent the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty pro bono. In addition to being a practicing trial attorney, Thapar was also a trial advocacy instructor at the Georgetown University Law Center from 1999 to 2000.[5] He was an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Columbia from 1999 to 2000.[5] He was general counsel to Equalfooting.com from 2000 to 2001.[5] He returned to private practice at the Squire, Sanders & Dempsey firm in Cincinnati, Ohio from 2001 to 2002 before entering a life of public service.[6]

United States Attorney

Thapar returned to the U.S. Attorney's Office as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio from 2002 to 2006. He was then nominated and confirmed to the position of United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, where he served from 2006 to 2007.[7][8]

While an Assistant U.S. Attorney, he was appointed to the Attorney General's Advisory Committee (AGAC) and chaired the AGAC's Controlled Substances and Asset Forfeiture subcommittee. He also served on its Terrorism and National Security subcommittee, Violent Crime subcommittee, and Child Exploitation working group.[9]

Thapar also led the Southern Ohio Mortgage Fraud Task Force, which successfully prosecuted approximately 40 perpetrators of mortgage fraud. He led the successful investigation and prosecution of a conspiracy ring to provide illegal aliens with fraudulent driver's licenses.[6]

Federal judicial service

Service as district court judge

On May 24, 2007, Thapar was nominated by President George W. Bush for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky seat vacated by Joseph Martin Hood.[10][11] The American Bar Association rated Thapar Unanimously Well Qualified, with one committee member abstaining.[12] Thapar was confirmed by the Senate on December 13, 2007[13] and received his commission on January 4, 2008.[14] The appointment made Thapar the first United States federal judge of South Asian descent.[15] His service on the district court terminated on May 30, 2017, upon elevation to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

Thapar began his career "First in Ohio as a line prosecutor pursuing drug dealers, gang members, and terrorist financiers. Then in Kentucky as a U.S. attorney and a trial judge known for his work ethic, writing, and teaching: he covered 3 far-flung courthouses in his own district (Covington, London, and Pikeville), volunteered to hear additional cases in Texas and on the Sixth and Eleventh Circuits, wrote award–winning opinions, and lectured regularly at UVA, Vanderbilt, Yale, Harvard, and other top schools."[16]

As a district court judge, Thapar heard cases in Covington, Kentucky outside of Cincinnati, as well as in London and Pikeville.[17] While on the bench, Thapar has served as an adjunct professor at Vanderbilt University Law School, University of Virginia School of Law, and Northern Kentucky University.[18] He has been an invited guest at Federalist Society programs.[19] Thapar was America's first federal district judge of South Asian descent.[20][15]

Thapar is known for his folksy and engaging writing style that is meant to be understood by everyday people. In an opinion about amount in controversy requirements holding that the amount was "exactly one penny short of the jurisdictional minimum of the federal courts" (Freeland v. Liberty Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 632 F.3d 250, 252 (6th Cir. 2011)), Thapar wrote about the humble penny, which "tend[s] to sit at the bottom of change jars or vanish into the cracks between couch cushions."[16] In another case, Thapar explained that if the owner of a bar "promised to pour [a] man a glass of Pappy Van Winkle" – a rare high-end bourbon – "but gave him a slug of Old Crow [a much lower-priced bourbon] instead, well, that would be fraud."[1]

Notable cases as a district court judge

In 2013, Thapar was assigned to a case in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee due to the impending retirement of Judge Thomas Phillips from the Knoxville court.[21] The case involved a high-profile break-in by peace protesters at the Y-12 National Security Complex's Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility in July 2012.[22][23] The three protesters, aged 57 to 82, were convicted.

On May 10, 2013, Thapar cited the definition of the federal crime of terrorism to keep the protesters in jail until their sentencing on February 18, 2014.[23][24] Thapar sentenced one of the defendants, 84-year-old nun Megan Rice, to 35 months in prison for breaking into the U.S. nuclear weapons complex and using blood to deface a bunker holding bomb-grade uranium, a demonstration that exposed serious security flaws; Rice had asked not to receive leniency and said she would be honored to receive a life sentence.[23] The two other defendants were sentenced to more than five years in prison, in part because they had much longer criminal histories. The activists' attorneys asked the judge to sentence them to time they had already served, about nine months, because of their record of goodwill. Thapar said he was concerned they showed no remorse and he wanted the punishment to be a deterrent for other activists.[25]

On appeal, the Sixth Circuit reversed the most serious convictions against the protesters and, in May 2015, ordered their immediate release from custody, noting that the protesters' sentencing guidelines now recommended substantially less time in custody than they had already served.[26]

Service on court of appeals

On March 21, 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Thapar to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.[27][28][29] Thapar received a unanimous well qualified rating from the American Bar Association.[30] On April 26, 2017 the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary held a hearing on his nomination.[31] On May 18, 2017, his nomination was reported to the floor of the Senate by a party line vote of 11–8 with one Democrat not voting. He was confirmed by the full Senate with a vote of 52–44 on May 25, 2017.[32] He received his commission on May 25, 2017. Thapar became the second Indian American judge of United States courts of appeals.[33]

The Lexington Herald-Leader reported when Thapar was nominated to the 6th Circuit that "lawyers across the political spectrum praised [him] as a highly intellectual, thoughtful and hard-working judge."[1]

Thapar also speaks at law schools across the country on originalism, textualism, civility, and other topics. He teaches at the University of Virginia Law School on the judicial philosophies of Justices Scalia and Thomas.[4]

In 2018, Thapar published a law review article about the role of judges. He criticized "pragmatic" judging and argued that judges should not be "politicians in robes."[34]

Consideration for the Supreme Court

Judge Thapar was first considered for the Supreme Court in 2016, when he was a Federal District Judge. He has been considered a front-runner for an open seat since then. Thapar was included in a list of individuals that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump "would consider as potential replacements for Justice Scalia at the United States Supreme Court."[35][36]

After the June 2018 announcement by sitting Justice Anthony Kennedy that he would retire from the court, Thapar remained on a Trump "short-list."[37] Thapar was one of six judges interviewed by President Trump early in July while being considered to fill the Kennedy vacancy,[38] which was ultimately filled by the appointment of Brett Kavanaugh.

Thapar has been described as, "Trump Country's Perfect SCOTUS Choice."[4] He would make history as the first Asian-American on the Supreme Court.[39]

Personal life

Thapar married Kim Schulte, a Kentucky real estate agent, and converted to Catholicism.[40][2] The couple reside in Covington, Kentucky with their three children.[2]

Thapar engages in his community through volunteer work. At his confirmation hearing, Senator Mitch McConnell noted that Thapar had "founded a brand-new chapter of the well-respected Street Law program, which sends law school students into underprivileged high schools to teach the basic underpinnings of our legal system."[1]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Potential nominee profile: Amul Thapar". SCOTUSblog. July 3, 2018. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  2. ^ a b c "Potential nominee profile: Amul Thapar". SCOTUSblog. July 3, 2018. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
  3. ^ "Ky judge on Trump's short list for high court". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
  4. ^ a b c d "Amul Thapar: Trump Country's Perfect SCOTUS Choice | RealClearPolitics". www.realclearpolitics.com.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Nominee Report" (PDF). Alliance for Justice. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
  6. ^ a b "U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works". Epw.senate.gov. Retrieved November 26, 2016.
  7. ^ "Presidential Nomination 1345, 109th United States Congress". United States Congress. February 17, 2006. Retrieved June 30, 2018.
  8. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on December 6, 2006. Retrieved December 6, 2006.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. ^ "Judge Amul Thapar | Faculty | Law School". law.vanderbilt.edu. Retrieved May 1, 2017.
  10. ^ "Presidential Nomination 607, 110th United States Congress". United States Congress. May 24, 2007. Retrieved June 30, 2018.
  11. ^ Rutkus, Denis Steven, and Bearden, Maureen (October 2008). "CRS Report for Congress, Nominations to Article III Lower Courts by President George W. Bush During the 110th Congress" (PDF). Congressional Research Service.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III Judicial Nominees, |110th Congress", accessed May 2, 2017.
  13. ^ "Washington Summary – ABA Governmental Affairs Office | Governmental Affairs Office". www.americanbar.org. December 14, 2007. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  14. ^ "Amul Thapar | U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit" (PDF). AFJ Nominee Report.
  15. ^ a b "The Front-Runners and Full List of Potential Supreme Court Nominees". The New York Times. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
  16. ^ a b "Textualism in the Trenches: Judge Amul Thapar and the Administrative State, by Ben Beaton | Notice & Comment". Yalejreg.com. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  17. ^ "Trump to nominate federal Judge Amul Thapar to 6th Circuit Court of Appeals". Kentucky.com. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  18. ^ "Ky judge on Trump's short list for high court". USA TODAY. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  19. ^ "Hon. Amul Thapar". www.fed-soc.org. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  20. ^ "President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Judge Amul R. Thapar for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit". whitehouse.gov. March 21, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  21. ^ "Notice" (PDF). United States District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee, Office of the Clerk. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2016. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  22. ^ Us v. Walli, April 30, 2013, retrieved May 2, 2017
  23. ^ a b c Gang, Duane W. (February 18, 2014). "Nun sentenced to 35 months in nuclear plant break-in". USA Today. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
  24. ^ "Sentencing for Y-12 Protesters Postponed until January". Knoxville News Sentinel. September 13, 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2017 – via Questia.
  25. ^ "Nun, 84, gets 3 years in prison for breaking into nuclear weapons complex". CBS News. February 18, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2016.
  26. ^ "Sister Megan Rice, Freed From Prison, Looks Ahead to More Anti-Nuclear Activism". The New York Times. Retrieved November 26, 2016.
  27. ^ "Presidential Nomination 105, 115th United States Congress". United States Congress. March 21, 2017. Retrieved June 30, 2018.
  28. ^ "Congressional Record".
  29. ^ "President Trump Sends Nominations to the Senate". March 21, 2017.
  30. ^ "American Bar Association Judicial Ratings" (PDF).
  31. ^ "United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary". www.judiciary.senate.gov.
  32. ^ "Senate roll call vote PN105". United States Senate. May 25, 2017. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  33. ^ "Amul Thapar becomes second Indian-American judge of US Court of Appeals". Hindustan Times. May 26, 2017.
  34. ^ Beaton, Benjamin (2018). "The Pragmatism of Interpretation: A Review ofRichard A. Posner,The Federal Judiciary". repository.law.umich.edu. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  35. ^ Flores, Reena (September 23, 2016). "Donald Trump will expand list of possible Supreme Court picks". CBS News. Retrieved September 23, 2016 – via MSN.
  36. ^ "Donald J. Trump Finalizes List of Potential Supreme Court Justice PicksS". www.donaldjtrump.com. Archived from the original on October 8, 2016. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  37. ^ Savage, David (July 3, 2018). "Judge Amy Coney Barrett, a potential Supreme Court nominee, has defended overturning precedents". LA Times. Retrieved July 3, 2018. Judge Brett Kavanaugh, 53, a Washington veteran who serves on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and Barrett, 46, have been seen as the front-runners. White House advisors say Judges Thomas Hardiman from Pennsylvania, Raymond Kethledge from Michigan and Amul Thapar from Kentucky are also top candidates from Trump's previously announced list of 25 judges, legal scholars and politicians.
  38. ^ Roberts, John. "Trump completes interviews of Supreme Court candidates, short-list down to 6". Fox News. Retrieved July 5, 2018.
  39. ^ "Trump should take a serious look at Amul Thapar for the Supreme Court". Washington Examiner. July 5, 2018.
  40. ^ "Meet the Kentuckian on Trump's short list for Supreme Court justice". USA TODAY. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
Legal offices
Preceded by United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky
2006–2008 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky
2008–2017 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
2017–present 		Incumbent
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