Your feedback ensures we stay focused on the facts that matter to you most—take our survey.
Wendy Beetlestone
2014 - Present
10
Wendy Beetlestone is the chief judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Prior to joining the court, she was shareholder at the law firm of Hangley Aronchick Segal Pudlin & Schiller. President Barack Obama nominated Beetlestone to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on June 16, 2014.[1] Beetlestone received confirmation to the court on November 20, 2014, when the Senate approved the nomination by voice vote.[2] In 2025, Beetlestone became the chief judge of the court.[3]
Education
Beetlestone earned her B.A. from Liverpool University in 1984 and her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1994. While at the University of Pennsylvania she served as an Articles Editor and Associate Editor for the law review.[1][4]
Professional career
- 2014 - Present: Judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- 2025 - Present: Chief judge
- 2005-2014: Shareholder, Hangley Aronchick Segal Pudlin & Schiller
- 2005: Lecturer, University of Pennsylvania Law School
- 2002-2005: General counsel, School District of Philadelphia
- 1994-2002: Harrison Segal & Lewis LLP
- 2001-2002: Partner
- 1994-2001: Associate
- 1993-1994: Law clerk, Hon. Robert Gawthrop, Eastern District of Pennsylvania[1][4]
Judicial career
Eastern District of Pennsylvania
 |
| Nominee Information |
| Name: Wendy Beetlestone |
| Court: Eastern District of Pennsylvania |
| Progress |
| Confirmed 157 days after nomination. |
 Nominated: June 16, 2014
|
| ABA Rating: Unanimously Qualified
|
| Questionnaire: Questionnaire |
| Hearing: July 24, 2014
|
| QFRs: QFRs (Hover over QFRs to read more) |
| Reported: September 18, 2014
|
| Confirmed: November 20, 2014
|
| Vote: Voice vote
|
Wendy Beetlestone was nominated by President Barack Obama on June 16, 2014, to fill a vacancy on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. President Obama on the nomination:
| “ | I am honored to put forward these highly qualified candidates for the federal bench. They will be distinguished public servants and valuable additions to the United States District Courts.[1][5] | ” |
The American Bar Association rated Beetlestone Unanimously Qualified for the nomination.[6]
The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing for Beetlestone on July 24, 2014.[7] The committee reported Beetlestone to the full Senate on September 18, 2014, on a voice vote.[8]
The United States Senate confirmed Beetlestone on November 20, 2014, on a voice vote.[2]
Awards and associations
The awards and associations are as they appeared on the questionnaire submitted to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Awards
- 2013: Selected as a Pennsylvania "Litigation Star" by the Benchmark Guide to America's Leading Litigation Firms and Attorneys
- 2012-2014: Selected as one of the Top 250 Female Litigators in America by Benchmark
- 2012-2014: Pennsylvania SuperLawyer
- 2012: Invited to be a member of The Sunday Breakfast Club
- 2012: Acknowledgement from the Philadelphia Bar Foundation for "Commitment to Access to Justice"
- 2011, 2012: Recognition from the Philadelphia Bar Association, Board of Governors, for "invaluable and dedicated services"
- 2010: Women's eNews Philadelphia Leadership Award as an "Empowerer of Others"
- 2008-Present: Regional Reporter of the United States Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit for the Education Law Association's School Law Reporter
- 2008-Present: Member, Pennsylvania Society
- 2007-Present: Selected for inclusion in "The Best Lawyers in America"
- 2007: Philadelphia's Top 101 "Connectors", Leadership, Inc.
- 2007: Recognition by the Philadelphia Bar Association, Public Interest Section, for "outstanding effort in the 2006 Raising the Bar Campaign"
- 2005: Citation by the School Reform Commission of the Philadelphia School District, for services to the School District
- 2001: 40 Under 40, Minority Executive Award
- 1992-1993: Articles Editor, University of Pennsylvania Law Review
- 1991-1992: Associate Editor, University of Pennsylvania Law Review
- 1984: Life Member, University of Liverpool, Guild of Undergraduates
Associations
- 2011-2013: Law Alumni Society board of managers, University of Pennsylvania Law School
- 2011-2012: Board of governors, Philadelphia Bar Association
- 2010-Present: Council for higher education, State Board of Education, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
- 2010-Present: State Board for Vocational Education, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
- 2010-2014: Germantown Cricket Club
- 2009-2010: Board of directors, Forum of Executive Women
- 2006-Present: Board of trustees, Philadelphia University
- 2010-Present: Executive committee
- 2005-Present: Board of trustees, Philadelphia Bar Foundation
- 2011-2012: President
- 2010: President-elect
- 2006-2009: Treasurer
- 2006-Present: Board of trustees, Philadelphia University
- 2011-Present: Achieving Innovation/Innovation Facilities Committee
- 2010-Present: Executive committee
- 2010-Present: Chair, Nominating Committee
- 2010-Present: Campaign Committee
- 2006: Education Industry Association
- 2004-Present: Forum of Executive Women
- 2009-2011: Co-chair, Public Sector Leadership Committee
- 2009-2010: Board of directors
- 2002-2010: Board of directors, The Mann Center for the Performing Arts
- 2003-2004: Radnor Valley Country Club
- 2002-2003: Board of directors, Wynnewood Civic Association
- 2001-2005: Board of directors, WYBE-TV
- 2002-2005: Treasurer
- 2001: Advisory committee, Lower Merion Township Cable Television Advisory Committee
- 1998-Present: Pyramid Club
- 2011-Present: Dormant
- 1998-2011: Active
- 1993-Present: University of Pennsylvania Law School Alumni Society
- 2011-2013: Law Alumni Society board of managers[4]
Noteworthy cases
Judge Beetlestone blocks Trump administration contraception rules (2019)
On January 14, 2019, Beetlestone issued a nationwide injunction against new contraception rules promulgated by the Trump Administration. A day earlier, a federal judge in California enjoined the rules in 13 states and Washington, D.C. The Departments of Health and Human Services, Treasury, and Labor announced the two final rules on contraception in November 2018. According to the agencies, those rules provide flexibility to employers with moral or religious objections to health insurance plans that cover contraception and sterilization. Under the new rules, those employers would be able to offer alternative health insurance plans without such coverage.[9][10][11][12][13]
The agencies followed a process called notice-and-comment rulemaking to issue the rules. That process allows agencies to amend, repeal, or create administrative regulations after considering public feedback on proposed rules.
Pennsylvania and New Jersey sued the Trump administration over the final rules and made five arguments against them:[13]
- The agencies failed to comply with notice-and-comment procedures required by the Administrative Procedure Act (APA)
- The rules fail the arbitrary-or-capricious test
- The rules violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
- The rules violate the equal protection guarantee of the Fifth Amendment
- The rules violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment
Judge Wendy Beetlestone held that the states’ argument that the agencies failed to follow notice-and-comment procedures, in violation of the APA, was likely to succeed. She also held that the rules failed the arbitrary-or-capricious test because they exceeded the scope of agency authority granted by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). She cited Chevron v. NRDC (1984) and wrote that the ACA was clear on the question so the agencies were not entitled to judicial deference.[13]
Judge Beetlestone ruled that the negative effects of a short period of decreased access to no-cost contraceptive services would be direct and irreversible. She said that states would be obligated to shoulder much of the burden of providing contraception for women who lose coverage following the final rules.[13]
Beetlestone defended the nationwide scope of her injunction in light of criticism for similar actions taken by judges in other cases in 2017 and 2018. She argued that an injunction limited to Pennsylvania and New Jersey would not reach citizens of those states who work for out-of-state employers nor reach students who may not be considered residents of those states. She said that her injunction might be broader than necessary to provide full relief to the states, but that the lack of empirical data requires judges to exercise discernment when crafting such orders.[13]
See also
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- United States Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit
External links
- Biography from the Federal Judicial Center
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 The White House, "President Obama Announces Intent to Nominate Five to Serve on the United States District Courts," June 13, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Library of Congress, "Nomination: PN1774-113," accessed November 25, 2014
- ↑ The Federal Judicial Center, "Beetlestone, Wendy," accessed August 14, 2025
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Senate Judiciary Committee, "Questionnaire for the Judicial Nominee," accessed July 16, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III Judicial Nominees: 113th Congress," accessed June 17, 2014 (dead link)
- ↑ Senate Judiciary Committee, "Judicial Nominations," accessed July 28, 2014
- ↑ Senate Judiciary Committee, "Results of Executive Business Meeting," September 18, 2014
- ↑ POLITICO, "Judge freezes Trump administration contraception rule," Alice Miranda Ollstein and Victoria Colliver, January 13, 2019
- ↑ Federal Register, "Moral Exemptions and Accommodations for Coverage of Certain Preventive Services Under the Affordable Care Act," November 15, 2018
- ↑ Federal Register, "Religious Exemptions and Accommodations for Coverage of Certain Preventive Services Under the Affordable Care Act," November 15, 2018
- ↑ NBC News, "Federal judge in Pennsylvania blocks Trump administration birth control rules," Reuters, January 14, 2019
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 Attorney General of Pennsylvania, "Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and State of New Jersey v. Donald J. Trump, et al.", Judge Wendy Beetlestone, January 14, 2019
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania 2014-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominated | |||
 |
State of Pennsylvania Harrisburg (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
