Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Bridget Brennan
2022 - Present
3
Bridget Brennan is a judge on the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. She was nominated by President Joe Biden (D) on September 30, 2021, and confirmed by the U.S. Senate on February 1, 2022, by a vote of 61-35.[1][2] Brennan was one of 235 Article III judges nominated by President Joe Biden (D) and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio is one of 94 U.S. District Courts. They are the general trial courts of the United States federal courts. To learn more about the court, click here.
Prior to her confirmation, Brennan was the acting U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.[3]
Judicial nominations and appointments
United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio (2022-present)
- See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden
On September 30, 2021, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Bridget Brennan to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. She was confirmed by a 61-35 vote of the U.S. Senate on February 1, 2022. She received commission on February 8, 2022.[1] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.
 |
| Nominee Information |
| Name: Bridget Brennan |
| Court: United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio |
| Progress |
| Confirmed 124 days after nomination. |
 Nominated: September 30, 2021
|
| ABA Rating: Qualified
|
| Questionnaire: Questionnaire |
| Hearing: November 17, 2021
|
| QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more) |
| Reported: December 16, 2021 (first) / January 13, 2022 (second)
|
| Confirmed: February 1, 2022
|
| Vote: 61-35
|
Confirmation vote
The U.S. Senate confirmed Brennan by a vote of 61-35 on February 1, 2022.[1] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.
| Brennan confirmation vote (February 1, 2022) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Yea | Nay | No vote | ||||||
 Democratic |
47 | 0 | 1 | ||||||
 Republican |
12 | 35 | 3 | ||||||
 Independent |
2 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| Total | 61 | 35 | 4 | ||||||
Senate Judiciary Committee hearing
The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Brennan's nomination on November 17, 2021. The committee voted to advance Brennan's nomination to the full Senate on December 16, 2021. The committee voted a second time to advance her nomination on January 13, 2022.
Nomination
On September 30, 2021, President Joe Biden (D) announced his intent to nominate Brennan to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.[3] The president nominated Brennan on the same day.[1]
Brennan's nomination was returned to the president at the sine die adjournment of the U.S. Senate on January 3, 2022.[4] The president renominated Brennan on the same day.[2]
Brennan was nominated to replace Judge Dan Polster, who assumed senior status on January 31, 2021.[1]
The American Bar Association rated Brennan Qualified.[5] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.
Biography
Education
Brennan earned a bachelor's degree from John Carroll University in 1997 and a J.D. from Case Western Reserve School of Law in 2000.[3]
Professional career
- 2022-present: Judge, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio
- 2013-2022: U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Ohio
- 2021-2022: Acting U.S. attorney
- 2018-2021: First assistant
- 2017-2018: Chief of the Criminal Division
- 2015-2017: Chief of the Civil Rights Unit
- 2013-2018: Ethics advisor
- 2000-2007: Associate, Baker Hostetler LLP, Cleveland, Ohio[3]
About the court
The Northern District of Ohio has original jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.
The geographic jurisdiction of the Northern District of Ohio consists of all the following counties in the northern part of the state of Ohio.
There are two court divisions, each covering the following counties:
The Eastern Division, covering Ashland, Ashtabula, Carroll, Crawford, Columbiana, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Holmes, Lake, Lorain, Mahoning, Medina, Portage, Richland, Stark, Summit, Trumbull, Tuscarawas and Wayne counties.
The Western Division, covering Allen, Auglaize, Defiance, Erie, Fulton, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Huron, Lucas, Marion, Mercer, Ottawa, Paulding, Putnam, Sandusky, Seneca, Van Wert, Williams, Wood and Wyandot counties.
To read opinions published by this court, click here.
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.
See also
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio
- United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio
- United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit
- Biography from the Federal Judicial Center
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Congress.gov, "PN1205 — Bridget Meehan Brennan — The Judiciary," accessed February 2, 2022
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Congress.gov, "PN1494 — Bridget Meehan Brennan — The Judiciary," accessed February 2, 2022
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 The White House, "President Biden Names Eighth Round of Judicial Nominees," September 30, 2021
- ↑ 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.
- ↑ American Bar Association, "RATINGS OF ARTICLE III AND ARTICLE IV JUDICIAL NOMINEES - 117TH CONGRESS," last updated November 16, 2021
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by: Dan Polster |
Northern District of Ohio 2022–present Seat #5 |
Succeeded by: NA
|
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Commissioned in 2025 | |||
| 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 • Eumi Lee • Krissa Lanham • Eric Schulte • Camela Theeler • Angela Martinez • Jasmine Yoon • Nancy Maldonado • Meredith Vacca • Georgia Alexakis • Joseph Saporito • Amy Baggio • Stacey Neumann • Mary Kay Lanthier • Adam Abelson • Laura Provinzino • Mary Kay Costello • Dena Coggins • Kevin Ritz • Shanlyn A. S. Park • Byron Conway • Jeannette Vargas • Michelle Williams Court • Jonathan E. Hawley • April Perry • Mustafa Kasubhai • Sarah Russell • Amir Ali • Rebecca Pennell • Anthony Brindisi • Elizabeth Coombe • Cynthia Valenzuela • Anne Hwang • Brian Murphy • Noël Wise • Sanket Bulsara • Tiffany Johnson • Sparkle Sooknanan • Gail Weilheimer • Embry Kidd • Melissa DuBose • Sharad Desai • Serena R. Murillo • Benjamin Cheeks • Sarah Davenport | ||
| 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:
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Northern District of Ohio, Southern District of Ohio • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Northern District of Ohio, Southern District of Ohio
State courts:
Ohio Supreme Court • Ohio District Courts of Appeal • Ohio Courts of Common Pleas • Ohio County Courts • Ohio Municipal Courts • Ohio Court of Claims
State resources:
Courts in Ohio • Ohio judicial elections • Judicial selection in Ohio
