Mary Kay Lanthier

Nomination Tracker
Nominee Information
	Name: Mary Kay Lanthier
	Court: United States District Court for the District of Vermont
Progress
	Confirmed 99 days after nomination.
	Nominated: June 4, 2024
	ABA Rating: Well qualified
	Questionnaire: Questionnaire
	Hearing: June 20, 2024
	Hearing Transcript: Hearing Transcript
	QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more)
	Reported: August 1, 2024
	Confirmed: September 11, 2024
	Vote: 55-42

Mary Kay Lanthier is a judge on the United States District Court for the District of Vermont. She was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on June 4, 2024, and confirmed by the United States Senate on September 11, 2024, by a vote of 55-42.^[1]^[2]^[3] Lanthier 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 District of Vermont 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 joining the court, Lanthier was the supervising attorney in the Rutland County Public Defender’s Office.^[4]

Judicial nominations and appointments

United States District Court for the District of Vermont (2024-present)

See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

On June 4, 2024, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Lanthier to the United States District Court for the District of Vermont.^[1] She was confirmed by a 55-42 vote of the U.S. Senate on September 11, 2024.^[2] Lanthier received commission on September 12, 2024.^[3] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.

Confirmation vote

The U.S. Senate confirmed Lanthier by a vote of 55-42 on September 11, 2024.^[2] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.

Lanthier confirmation vote (September 11, 2024)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	48	0	0
Republican	4	42	3
Independent	3	0	0
Total	55^[5]	42	3

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Lanthier's nomination on June 20, 2024.^[6] Lanthier was reported to the full Senate on August 1, 2024, after a 13-7 committee vote.^[7]^[8] Click here for a list of other nominees awaiting a committee vote.

Nomination

On May 23, 2024, President Joe Biden (D) announced his intent to nominate Mary Kay Lanthier to the United States District Court for the District of Vermont. The president officially nominated Lanthier on June 4, 2024. Click here for a list of other nominees who have been nominated by President Joe Biden.

The American Bar Association (ABA) rated Lanthier well qualified.^[9] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.

Lanthier was nominated to replace Judge Geoffrey Crawford, who will assume senior status upon Lanthier's commission.^[10]

Biography

Early life and education

Lanthier was born in 1971 in Rutland, Vermont. She earned a bachelor's degree from Amherst College in 1993 and a law degree from Northeastern University School of Law in 1996.^[4]^[3]

Professional career

2024-present: Judge, United States District Court for the District of Vermont
2007-2024: Supervising attorney in the Rutland County Public Defender’s Office
2017-2023: Adjunct professor, Vermont Law and Graduate School
2003-2007: Private practice
2000-2003: Public defender with the Addison County Public Defender’s Office
1998-2000: Associate
1996-1998: Law clerk^[4]

About the court

The District of Vermont has original jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.

The jurisdiction of the District of Vermont consists of all the counties in the state of Vermont.

The court has locations in Burlington and Rutland.

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.