John Walker (New York)

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John Walker
Image of John Walker

Nonpartisan

United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit (senior status)
Tenure

2006 - Present

Years in position

17

Prior offices
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit

Education

Bachelor's

Yale University, 1962

Law

University of Michigan Law School, 1966

Personal
Birthplace
New York, N.Y.


John Mercer Walker, Jr., is a federal judge on senior status with the United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit. He joined the court in 1989 after being nominated by President George H.W. Bush. At the time of his appointment, Walker was a judge on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. He joined the district court in 1985 after a nomination from President Ronald Reagan. At the time of his appointment to the district court, he was an assistant secretary for the U.S. Treasury Department. He assumed senior status on October 1, 2006.[1]

Early life and education

Born in New York, New York, Walker graduated from Yale University with his bachelor's degree in 1962, and from the University of Michigan Law School with his J.D. in 1966.[1]

Military service

From 1963 to 1967, Walker served as a private first class in the United States Marine Corps Reserve.[1]

Professional career

  • 1987-1992: Special counsel, Administrative Conference of the United States
  • 1981-1985: Assistant secretary of the Treasury
  • 1975-1981: Private practice, New York City
  • 1970-1975: Assistant U.S. attorney, criminal division, Southern District of New York
  • 1969-1970: Private practice, New York City
  • 1966-1968: State counsel, Republic of Botswana (Africa-Asia Public Service Fellowship)[1]

Judicial career

2nd Circuit Court of Appeals

Nomination Tracker
Fedbadgesmall.png
Nominee Information
Name: John M. Walker, Jr.
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit
Progress
Confirmed 62 days after nomination.
ApprovedANominated: September 21, 1989
ApprovedAABA Rating: Unanimously Well Qualified
Questionnaire:
ApprovedAHearing: November 7, 1989
QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more)
ApprovedAReported: November 16, 1989 
ApprovedAConfirmed: November 22, 1989
ApprovedAVote: Unanimous consent

Walker was nominated to the United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit by President George H.W. Bush on September 21, 1989, to a seat vacated by Irving Kaufman. The American Bar Association rated Walker Unanimously Well Qualified for the nomination.[2] Hearings on Walker's nomination were held before the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary on November 7, 1989, and his nomination was reported by then-U.S. Sen. Joseph Biden (D-Del.) on November 16, 1989. Walker was confirmed by the unanimous consent of the U.S. Senate on November 22, 1989, and he received his commission on November 27, 1989. He served as chief judge of the court from 2000 to 2006. He assumed senior status on September 30, 2006.[1][3] He was succeeded to this post by Debra Livingston.

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

Walker was nominated to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York by President Ronald Reagan on June 25, 1985, to a seat vacated by Morris Lasker. Hearings on Walker's nomination were held before the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 17, 1985, and his nomination was reported by U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-S.C.) on July 18, 1985. Walker was confirmed by a voice vote of the U.S. Senate on July 19, 1985, and he received his commission on July 22, 1985. He resigned from the court on December 19, 1989, upon his elevation to the Second Circuit.[1][4] He was succeeded to this post by Sonia Sotomayor.

Noteworthy cases

District Court "stop-and-frisk" ruling remains intact (2013)
See also: United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit ([Part 2 Floyd v. City of New York])

On October 31, 2013, a three-judge panel of the Second Circuit, composed of Judge Jose Cabranes and Senior Judges Walker and Barrington Parker, removed Judge Shira Scheindlin from Floyd v. City of New York and put the remedies proposed by the judge on hold. The previous court order was stayed until an appeal was heard by the panel.[5]

Scheindlin was removed from the case as a result of interviews with the media in May 2013 which made the court question her impartiality. In response to the accusation that she violated the Code of Conduct for federal judges, Scheindlin said:

“ The interviews . . . were conducted under the express condition that I would not comment on the Floyd case. I did not. Some of the reporters used quotes from written opinions in Floyd that gave the appearance that I had commented on the case. However, a careful reading of each interview will reveal that no such comments were made.[6] [7] ”

On November 22, 2013, the judicial panel refused in a per curiam decision to vacate Judge Scheindlin's prior ruling which struck down the NYPD's stop-and-frisk policy. The judges denied motions filed by New York City to transfer the court's October 2013 stay of Scheindlin's ruling into its vacation, and further denied as moot motions filed by Scheindlin in opposition to the City's previously described motions. Judge Scheindlin's groundbreaking "stop-and-frisk" decision still stands.[8]

Background

In August 2013, Scheindlin ruled that the New York Police Department's (NYPD) "stop-and-frisk" rule, which the NYPD credited with saving lives, disregarded the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments. Scheindlin also found that officers used racial profiling during the process, unfairly targeting minorities.[9][10][11]

Citigroup liability case (2011)
See also: United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit (In re Citigroup ERISA Litigation, 662 F. 3d 128)

Judge Walker authored the Second Circuit's opinion in a ruling declaring that Citigroup was not liable to workers who lost money on their 401(k) plans due to the company's exposure to toxic debt. The court split 2-1 in the decision, with Judge Jose Cabranes agreeing with Judge Walker and Judge Chester Straub dissenting. The case was brought under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 by workers who claimed that Citigroup should not have offered bank stock in its retirement plans because it knew its subprime mortgage exposure made the stock a dangerous investment. The court disagreed, and Judge Walker wrote that the workers did not show that Citigroup "either knew or should have known that Citigroup was in the sort of dire situation that required them to override plan terms in order to limit participants' investments in Citigroup stock." Marc Machiz, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, expected the case to be reheard by the full Second Circuit.[12]

See also

External links


Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Federal Judicial Center, "Biographical directory of federal judges," accessed June 8, 2016
  2. ↑ American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III judicial nominees, 101st Congress," accessed June 8, 2016
  3. ↑ United States Congress, "PN 754 - John M. Walker Jr. - The Judiciary," accessed June 8, 2016
  4. ↑ United States Congress, "PN 394 - John M. Walker Jr. - The Judiciary," accessed June 8, 2016
  5. ↑ Center for Constitutional Rights, "Second Circuit Decision in Floyd v. City of New York FAQ," accessed January 25, 2014
  6. ↑ New York Daily News, "Stop-and-frisk judge removed from case, reforms put on hold after federal appeals court ruling," October 31, 2013
  7. ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  8. ↑ Courthouse News Service, "Boot to Stop-and-Frisk Judge Won't Kill Rulings," November 22, 2013
  9. ↑ New York Times, "Judge Rejects New York's Stop-and-Frisk Policy," August 12, 2013
  10. ↑ National Journal, "Why 'Stop and Frisk' Was Ruled Unconstitutional," August 12, 2013
  11. ↑ Nation Sun Journal, "Federal court strikes down New York's stop-and-frisk policy," August 12, 2013
  12. ↑ Reuters, "Citigroup wins in workers' 401(k) stock drop appeal," October 13, 2011
Political offices
Preceded by:
Morris Lasker 		Southern District of New York
1985–1989 		Succeeded by:
Sonia Sotomayor
Preceded by:
Irving Kaufman 		Second Circuit
1989–2006
Seat #7 		Succeeded by:
Debra Livingston





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