Thursday, April 26, 2018

BREAKING -- President Trump nominates three to SDFLA bench

Congratulations to Roy Altman, Rudy Ruiz, and Rodney Smith for being officially nominated to the U.S. District Bench for the Southern District of Florida. Here is the White House press release:

If confirmed, Roy K. Altman of Florida will serve as a District Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Roy Altman is a partner at Podhurst Orseck P.A., where his practice has focused on aviation and commercial litigation since 2014. Before entering private practice, Mr. Altman served for six years as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, where he prosecuted hundreds of cases covering the full range of Federal criminal conduct. Over this period, Mr. Altman tried more than 20 cases to jury verdict and argued several of these before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. During his service as a Federal prosecutor, Mr. Altman won a number of awards including the Director of the Executive Office of U.S. Attorneys Award for “Superior Litigation Team” in United States v. Mentor (first-degree murder), the Director of the Executive Office of U.S. Attorneys Award for “Superior Litigation Performance” in United States v. Flanders (human trafficking), the Federal Bar Association Young Federal Lawyer Award (one of five attorneys under 37 nationwide), and the “Federal Prosecutor of the Year” award from the Miami-Dade County Association of Chiefs of Police and the Law Enforcement Officers Charitable Foundation. Upon graduation from law school, Mr. Altman served as a law clerk to Miami-based Circuit Judge Stanley Marcus of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Mr. Altman earned his B.A., cum laude, from Columbia University, where he played baseball and football, and his J.D. from Yale Law School, where he served as the projects editor of the Yale Law Journal.

If confirmed, Rodolfo “Rudy” Ruiz II of Florida will serve as a District Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Rudy Ruiz currently serves as a Circuit Judge in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida since his appointment by the Governor in 2014. As a Circuit Judge, Judge Ruiz has presided over both civil and criminal divisions. He previously served for two years as a County Court Judge in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, where he handled a full range of civil and criminal cases. Before ascending to the bench, Judge Ruiz served for three years as an Assistant County Attorney in the Miami-Dade County Attorney’s Office, where he handled a wide range of civil defense matters in Federal and State court at both trial and appellate levels. Before joining the County Attorney’s Office, Judge Ruiz practiced corporate law in the Miami office of White & Case LLP. Upon graduation from law school, Judge Ruiz served as a law clerk to Judge Federico A. Moreno of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Judge Ruiz earned his B.S. from Duke University and his J.D. from Georgetown University, where he was an articles editor of the American Criminal Law Review.

If confirmed, Rodney Smith of Florida will serve as a District Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Rodney Smith serves as a Circuit Judge in the civil and felony criminal divisions of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, where he has served since his appointment by the Governor in 2012. In this capacity, he also serves as co-chair of the Diversity Committee of the Florida Conference of Circuit Judges. He previously served for four years as a Miami-Dade County Court Judge of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, where he handled both civil and criminal cases. Before ascending to the bench, Judge Smith served as a senior assistant city attorney in the Office of the City Attorney for Miami Beach, where he handled a broad range of civil defense matters. Before joining the City Attorney’s office, Judge Smith practiced insurance defense law at a number of private Miami firms. Upon graduation from law school, Judge Smith served for four years as an Assistant State Attorney in the Miami-Dade County State Attorney’s Office. Judge Smith earned his B.S., cum laude, from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, and his J.D., cum laude, from the Michigan State University College of Law.

This still leaves two open spots on the court. No word on whether the JNC will forward new names or whether the White House is going to pick different people.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Remember that Rubio used the blue slip procedure to block qualified nominees. Nelson needs to do the same.

Anonymous said...

All 3 are great picks. Rudy Ruiz is tops. Been in front of him in county and circuit. He was incredibly patient with a very difficult attorney. Not a pushover, just fair, hard working and smart. Guy has the stuff.

Nelson has class, he ain't blocking anybody who doesn't deserve to be blocked, and these three should not be blocked .

From a raging Democrat.

Anonymous said...

Too late for that. Judges shouldnt owe favors to Senators for their nomination.

The search now starts fresh for the 2 remaining seats.

Anonymous said...

WOW!

MORE THAN 20 CASES TO VERDICT!

WOW!

OH WOW!

Anonymous said...

4:17 PM -- what a dumb comment.

Anonymous said...

Yes, very dumb. 20 trials of "what happened next" definitely merits a lifetime appointtment.

Anonymous said...

Don't forget: what..."did you see" "did he say" "if anything..."

Joking aside, the guy is good guy and sharp, very hard working, he will be a good dj.

Anonymous said...

OK, 10:44 AM. I agree that DJs should have some trial experience. But how much? If he had 40 as a federal prosecutor, would he then be qualified? If the number of trials were the principal criterion, then ASAs would be the most qualified for the job.

Sorry, but I just don't get it. We need judges not solely to preside over trials, but also to sentence defendants, deal with complex business disputes, decide whether laws are constitutional, handle discovery disputes, write orders on motions to dismiss and summary judgment, etc.

In addition to being a federal prosecutor, Roy served as a judicial law clerk for one of the most respected and hardworking circuit judges, and he has been a partner at one of the nation's top trial firms for four years. Yet you appear not to put any weight on that highly relevant and varied experience, which -- in my view -- more than qualifies him for the job.

Anonymous said...

How many trials do the other two have?