Alison J. Nathan
2022 - Present
2
Alison J. Nathan is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit. She was nominated by President Joe Biden (D) on November 18, 2021, and confirmed by the U.S. Senate on March 23, 2022, by a 49-47 vote.[1][2][3] To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.
The United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit is one of 13 U.S. courts of appeal. They are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal courts. To learn more about the 2nd Circuit, click here.
Nathan was a federal judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York from 2011 to 2022. She was nominated to the court by President Barack Obama (D).[4]
Judicial nominations and appointments
United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit (2022-present)
- See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden
On November 18, 2021, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Nathan to the United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit. She was confirmed by a 49-47 vote of the U.S. Senate on March 23, 2022, and received commission on March 30.[1][2][4] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.
 |
| Nominee Information |
| Name: Alison J. Nathan |
| Court: United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit |
| Progress |
| Confirmed 125 days after nomination. |
 Nominated: November 18, 2021
|
| ABA Rating: Well Qualified with two recusals
|
| Questionnaire: Questionnaire |
| Hearing: December 15, 2021
|
| Hearing Transcript: Hearing Transcript |
| QFRs: QFRs (Hover over QFRs to read more) |
| Reported: January 20, 2022
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| Confirmed: March 23, 2022
|
| Vote: 49-47
|
Confirmation vote
The U.S. Senate confirmed Nathan by a vote of 49-47 on March 23, 2022.[3] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.
| Nathan confirmation vote (March 23, 2022) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Yea | Nay | No vote | ||||||
 Democratic |
45 | 0 | 3 | ||||||
 Republican |
3 | 47 | 0 | ||||||
 Independent |
1 | 0 | 1 | ||||||
| Total | 49 | 47 | 4 | ||||||
Senate Judiciary Committee hearing
The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Nathan's nomination on December 15, 2021. The committee voted to advance Nathan's nomination to the full Senate on January 20, 2022.
Nomination
On November 17, 2021, President Joe Biden (D) announced his intent to nominate Nathan to the United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit. The president officially nominated Nathan on November 18.[2]
Nathan's nomination was returned to the president at the sine die adjournment of the U.S. Senate on January 3, 2022.[5] The president renominated Nathan on the same day.[3]
Nathan was nominated to replace Judge Rosemary Pooler, who announced on October 7, 2021, that she would assume senior status upon the confirmation of her successor.[1][6]
The American Bar Association rated Nathan Well Qualified with two recusals.[7] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (2011-2022)
- See also: Federal judges nominated by Barack Obama
On March 31, 2011, President Barack Obama (D) nominated Nathan to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. She was confirmed by a 48-44 vote of the U.S. Senate on October 13, 2011.[8] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.
Confirmation vote
The U.S. Senate confirmed Nathan by a vote of 48-44 on October 13, 2011.[8] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.
| Nathan confirmation vote (October 13, 2011) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Yea | Nay | No vote | ||||||
| Democratic |
47 | 0 | 4 | ||||||
| Republican |
0 | 44 | 3 | ||||||
| Independent |
1 | 0 | 1 | ||||||
| Total | 48 | 44 | 8 | ||||||
Senate Judiciary Committee hearing
The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Nathan's nomination on June 8, 2011. On July 14, 2011, her nomination was reported to the full Senate.[8] Click here to view Nathan's committee questionnaire and here to read her questions for the record.
Nomination
On March 31, 2011, President Barack Obama (D) nominated Nathan to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Nathan was nominated to replace Judge Sidney Stein, who retired.[8]
The American Bar Association rated Nathan qualified by a majority and not qualified by a minority, with one recusal.[9] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.
Biography
Education
Nathan received her B.A. from Cornell University in 1994 and her J.D., magna cum laude, from Cornell Law School in 2000.[10][4]
Professional career
- 2022-present: Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit
- 2011-2022: Judge, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
- 2010-2011: Special counsel to the solicitor general, New York
- 2009-2010: Associate White House counsel and special assistant to President Barack Obama
- 2008-2009: Fritz Alexander fellow, New York University School of Law
- 2006-2008: Visiting assistant professor, Fordham University School of Law
- 2005-2006: Attorney in private practice, New York City, New York
- 2002-2005: Attorney in private practice, Washington D.C.
- 2001-2002: Law clerk, Justice John Paul Stevens, Supreme Court of the United States
- 2000-2001: Law clerk, Honorable Betty Fletcher, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals[10][4]
About the courts
2nd Circuit
| Second Circuit |
|---|
| Court of Appeals |
|
| Judgeships |
| Posts: 13 |
| Judges: 13 |
| Vacancies: 0 |
| Judges |
| Chief: Debra Livingston |
| Active judges: Joseph Bianco, Maria Araujo Kahn, Eunice Lee, Debra Livingston, Raymond Lohier, Steven Menashi, Sarah Ann Leilani Merriam, William Nardini, Alison J. Nathan, Michael H. Park, Myrna Pérez, Beth Robinson, Richard Sullivan Senior judges: |
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is a federal appellate court with appellate jurisdiction. It hears appeals from all of the circuit courts within its jurisdiction and its rulings may be appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States.
Appeals are heard in the Thurgood Marshall Federal Courthouse in New York City.
Four judges of the Second Circuit went on to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. John Marshall Harlan II was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1955 by Dwight Eisenhower, Thurgood Marshall was appointed in 1967 by Lyndon Johnson, and Sonia Sotomayor was appointed in 2009 by Barack Obama.
The Second Circuit has appellate jurisdiction over cases heard in one of its subsidiary districts. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law. Appeals of rulings by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit are petitioned to the Supreme Court of the United States. Justice Sonia Sotomayor is the circuit justice for the Second Circuit.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit's territory comprises the states of Connecticut, New York, and Vermont. The court has appellate jurisdiction over the United States district courts in the following federal judicial districts:
- District of Connecticut
- Eastern District of New York
- Northern District of New York
- Southern District of New York
- Western District of New York
- District of Vermont
To read opinions published by this court, click here.
Southern District of New York
| Southern District of New York |
|---|
| Second Circuit |
|
| Judgeships |
| Posts: 28 |
| Judges: 27 |
| Vacancies: 1 |
| Judges |
| Chief: Laura Swain |
| Active judges: Ronnie Abrams, Vernon Broderick, Valerie Caproni, Andrew L. Carter Jr., Jessica Clarke, John Peter Cronan, Paul A. Engelmayer, Katherine Failla, Jesse Furman, Margaret Garnett, Philip M. Halpern, Dale Ho, Kenneth Karas, John Koeltl, Lewis Liman, James Paul Oetken, Edgardo Ramos, Jennifer Rearden, Jennifer Rochon, Nelson S. Roman, Lorna Schofield, Cathy Seibel, Arun Subramanian, Laura Swain, Analisa Torres, Mary Kay Vyskocil, Gregory Howard Woods Senior judges: |
The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is one of 94 United States district courts. The Southern District is one of the most influential and active federal district courts in the United States, largely because of its jurisdiction over New York's major financial centers. When decisions of the court are appealed, they are appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit based in Lower Manhattan at the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Federal Courthouse.
The Southern District of New York has original jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.
The court shares geographic jurisdiction over New York City with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, which manages Brooklyn, Queens, and Richmond (Staten Island) counties, along with Nassau and Suffolk on Long Island.
The federal nomination process
Federal judges are nominated by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate. There are multiple steps to the process:
- The president nominates an individual for a judicial seat.
- The nominee fills out a questionnaire and is reviewed by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
- The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing with the nominee, questioning them about things like their judicial philosophy, past rulings or opinions, etc.
- As part of this process, the committee sends a blue slip to senators from the home state in which the judicial nomination was received, allowing them to express their approval or disapproval of the nominee.
- After the hearing, the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote to approve or return the nominee.
- If approved, the nominee is voted on by the full Senate.
- If the Committee votes to return the nominee to the president, the president has the opportunity to re-nominate the individual.
- The Senate holds a vote on the candidate.
- If the Senate confirms the nomination, the nominee receives a commission to serve a lifelong position as a federal judge.
- If the Senate does not confirm the nomination, that nominee does not become a judge.
Noteworthy cases
Beastie Boys illegal sampling case (2013)
- See also: United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (TufAmerica, Inc. v. Diamond, et al, 1:12-cv-03529-AJN)
- See also: United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (TufAmerica, Inc. v. Diamond, et al, 1:12-cv-03529-AJN)
Nathan presided over a copyright infringement case filed against the Beastie Boys by record licensing entity TufAmerica. The company alleged that in the 1980s, the hip-hip group illegally sampled music from the band Trouble Funk, an R&B group whose licensing rights were owned by the company. TufAmerica claimed the Beastie Boys illegally used six samples of Trouble Funk’s music for a total of 20 seconds, thus infringing upon the R&B group’s rights. The Beastie Boys moved to dismiss the claims.
Nathan was tasked with determining how the song samples ought to be compared. The Beastie Boys requested that the ordinary observer test be applied, while TufAmerica requested that the fragmented literal similarity test be applied. Nathan agreed with TufAmerica, noting that "[t]he real question at this stage - more so than the question of how to label the relevant test - is whether (as to each sample) plaintiff has plausibly alleged that the sample is quantitatively and qualitatively important to the original work such that the fragmented similarity becomes sufficiently substantial for the use to become an infringement.”
Nathan ruled that four of the six samples failed to rise to the level of infringement, but that the remaining two may pass the muster of the fragmented literal similarity test. In doing so, however, she limited TufAmerica’s claims to the three-year statute of limitations set forth in the U.S. Copyright Act, declaring that the licensing entity could not seek monetary damages for any alleged instances of infringement that had occurred before May 12, 2009.[11][12][13][14][15]
See also
- United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
- United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
- United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit
- Biography from the Federal Judicial Center
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 The White House, "President Biden Names Tenth Round of Judicial Nominees," November 17, 2021
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Congress.gov, "PN1424 — Alison J. Nathan — The Judiciary," accessed November 19, 2021
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Congress.gov, "PN1504 — Alison J. Nathan — The Judiciary," accessed January 5, 2022
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Federal Judicial Center, "Nathan, Alison Julie," accessed March 23, 2022
- ↑ Under Senate Rule XXXI, paragraph 6 of the Standing Rules of the Senate, pending nominations are returned to the president if the Senate adjourns sine die or recesses for more than 30 days.
- ↑ The White House, "Nominations Sent to the Senate," November 18, 2021
- ↑ American Bar Association, "RATINGS OF ARTICLE III AND ARTICLE IV JUDICIAL NOMINEES 117TH CONGRESS," Last Updated: December 14, 2021
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Congress.gov, "PN375 — Alison J. Nathan — The Judiciary," accessed March 27, 2022
- ↑ 'American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III Judicial Nominees: 112th Congress," accessed March 28, 2022
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedbio - ↑ Huffington Post, "Beastie Boys Lawsuit: Group Sued Over Alleged Copyright Infringement On 'Licensed To Ill' & 'Paul's Boutique'," May 8, 2012
- ↑ Courthouse News Service, "Copyright Claims May Stick to Beastie Boys," September 11, 2013
- ↑ Billboard, "Beastie Boys’ 'Paul's Boutique' Sampling Lawsuit: The Fine Print," September 13, 2013
- ↑ Bloomberg Law, "No Relief for Pre-2009 Alleged Infringement Of Funk Rock Records by the Beastie Boys," September 11, 2013
- ↑ New York Law Journal, "Decision: TufAmerica, Inc., Plaintiff v. Diamond, et al," September 12, 2013
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Rosemary Pooler |
United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit 2022-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by Sidney Stein |
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York 2011-2022 |
Succeeded by - |
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Commissioned in 2024 |
John Kazen • John Russell • Margaret Garnett • Cristal Brisco • Jacquelyn Austin • Gretchen Hess Lund • Micah Smith • Joshua Kolar • Karoline Mehalchick • Kirk Sherriff • Lisa Wang • David Leibowitz • Jacqueline Becerra • Julie Sneed • Melissa Damian • Kelly H. Rankin • Nicole Berner • Sunil Harjani • Leon Schydlower • Ernesto Gonzalez • Susan Bazis • Robert White • Ann Marie McIff Allen | ||
| Commissioned in 2023 |
Kai Scott • Tamika Montgomery-Reeves • Margaret R. Guzman • Daniel Calabretta • Matthew Garcia • DeAndrea G. Benjamin • Cindy Chung • Adrienne Nelson • Lindsay Jenkins • Gina Méndez-Miró • Araceli Martínez-Olguín • Jamar Walker • Ana Reyes • Jamal Whitehead • Gordon Gallagher • Matthew Brookman• Maria Araujo Kahn• James Simmons • Robert Ballou• Andrew Schopler • Jonathan Grey• Colleen Lawless • Arun Subramanian • Jessica Clarke • Robert Kirsch • Michael Farbiarz • Anthony Johnstone • Orelia Merchant • Wesley Hsu • Bradley Garcia • LaShonda A. Hunt • Nancy Gbana Abudu • Amanda Brailsford • Darrel Papillion • Jeremy Daniel • Hernan D. Vera • Julie Rikelman • Nusrat Choudhury • P. Casey Pitts • Myong Joun • Kymberly Evanson • Tiffany Cartwright • Rachel Bloomekatz • Natasha Merle • Dale Ho • Philip Hadji • Rita Lin • Brendan Hurson • Vernon D. Oliver • Matthew Maddox • Julia Munley • Brandy McMillion • Susan DeClercq • Julia Kobick • Ramon Reyes, Jr. • Ana de Alba • Kenly Kiya Kato • Mónica Ramírez Almadani • Jeffrey M. Bryan • Jamel Semper • Irma Ramirez • Richard Federico • Loren AliKhan • Brandon Long • Jerry Edwards Jr.• Sara Hill • Joseph Laroski | ||
| Commissioned in 2022 | David Herrera Urias • Gabriel Sanchez • Holly Thomas • Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong • David Ruiz • Charles Fleming • Bridget Brennan • Leonard Stark • Alison J. Nathan • John Chun • Julie Rubin • Jacqueline Scott Corley • Ruth Bermudez Montenegro • Victoria Calvert • Georgette Castner • Anne Traum • Cristina Silva • Ketanji Brown Jackson (Supreme Court) • Sarah Geraghty • Hector Gonzalez • Fred Slaughter • Jennifer Rochon • Robert Huie • Sunshine S. Sykes • Stephanie Dawkins Davis • Evelyn Padin • Sherilyn P. Garnett • Ana de Alba • J. Michelle Childs • Trina Thompson • Elizabeth Hanes • Nancy Maldonado • Nina Morrison • Gregory Williams • John Z. Lee • Sal Mendoza, Jr. • Lara Montecalvo • Florence Pan • Andre Mathis • Sarah A.L. Merriam • Jennifer Rearden • Roopali Desai • María Antongiorgi-Jordán • Camille Vélez-Rivé • Doris Pryor • Frances Kay Behm • Dana Douglas • Mia Roberts Perez • Anne Nardacci • Jeffery P. Hopkins | ||
| Commissioned in 2021 |
Ketanji Brown Jackson • Zahid Quraishi • Julien Xavier Neals • Deborah Boardman • Regina Rodriguez • Candace Jackson-Akiwumi • Lydia Kay Griggsby • Tiffany Cunningham • Eunice Lee • Angel Kelley • Florence Pan • Veronica Rossman • David G. Estudillo • Sarah A.L. Merriam • Gustavo Gelpí • Christine O'Hearn • Margaret Strickland • Karen McGlashan Williams • Patricia Tolliver Giles • Toby Heytens • Michael Nachmanoff • Sarala Nagala • Beth Robinson • Omar A. Williams • Myrna Pérez • Jia Cobb • Tana Lin • Lauren King • Lucy H. Koh • Jennifer Sung • Samantha Elliott • Katherine Menendez • Mary Dimke • Linda Lopez • Shalina Kumar • Jane Beckering • Jinsook Ohta • Jennifer L. Thurston • Stephen Locher • Charlotte Sweeney • Nina Nin-Yuen Wang • Arianna Freeman • Jerry Blackwell | ||
Federal courts:
Second Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of New York, Western District of New York, Northern District of New York, Southern District of New York • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of New York, Western District of New York, Northern District of New York, Southern District of New York
State courts:
New York Court of Appeals • New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division • New York Supreme Court • New York County Courts • New York City Courts • New York Town and Village Courts • New York Family Courts • New York Surrogates' Courts • New York City Civil Court • New York City Criminal Courts • New York Court of Claims • New York Problem Solving Courts
State resources:
Courts in New York • New York judicial elections • Judicial selection in New York
