On August 27, 2018, President Trump nominated Bridget Bade to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to fill the seat of Judge Barry G. Silverman, who assumed senior status in 2016. Alliance for Justice recommends that the Senate Judiciary Committee carefully review Bade’s record before putting her in a lifetime seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Biography
Bridget Bade graduated from Arizona State University in 1987 and Arizona State University, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law in 1990. After law school, Bade served as a law clerk to Judge Edith H. Jones on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. From 1991 to 1995, Bade worked as a trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice in the Civil Division’s Environmental Torts Litigation Section.
Bade practiced as a Shareholder from 1995 to 2005 at Beshears Wallwork Bellamy. She continued as Special Counsel from 2005 to 2006 when the firm merged with Steptoe & Johnson. Following her time in private practice, Bade was an Assistant United States Attorney from 2006 to 2012 in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona.
U.S. Magistrate Judge
In 2012, Bade was appointed to be a U.S. Magistrate Judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona. She currently serves in that position. It is notable for someone to be elevated directly from a magistrate judge position to a circuit court seat.
Bade’s record as a magistrate judge consists largely of issuing orders, reports, and recommendations. The vast majority of the reports and recommendations deal with procedural issues stemming from cases before district court judges. In her Senate Judiciary Questionnaire, Bade indicated that she has presided over four cases that have gone to verdict or judgment: one civil jury trial, one civil bench trial, and two criminal bench trials.
During her time as a magistrate judge, Bade has spoken frequently at public events. Some of her speaking engagements include several introductory speeches at Federal Bar Association events where she has spoken on topics including the 14th Amendment, Japanese internment, and Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966).
Conclusion
The Senate Judiciary Committee should carefully examine Bade’s record before putting her in a lifetime seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.