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Dana Douglas
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Incumbent
Assumed office December 16, 2022
Appointed by	Joe Biden
Preceded by	James L. Dennis
Magistrate Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana
In office January 6, 2019 – December 16, 2022
Personal details
Born	Dana Marie Douglas 1975 (age 48–49) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
Education	Miami University (BA) Loyola University New Orleans (JD)

Dana Marie Douglas (born 1975) is an American attorney who is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. She previously served as a United States magistrate judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana from 2019 to 2022.

Education

Douglas graduated from St. Mary's Academy in New Orleans. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from Miami University in 1997 and a Juris Doctor from the Loyola University New Orleans College of Law in 2000.

Career

From 2000 to 2001, Douglas served as a law clerk for Judge Ivan L. R. Lemelle of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. From 2003 to 2013, she was a member of the New Orleans Civil Service Commission. In this role, Douglas authored an opinion affirming the suspension and termination of a police officer for committing a battery against a civilian. In another case, Douglas affirmed disciplinary actions against officers who formed a limited liability company to administer their paid off-duty police details.

She was also a partner for 17 years at the New Orleans office of Liskow & Lewis, a Louisiana law firm focused on energy and oil industries.

Douglas is a former president of both the New Orleans Bar Association and the Greater New Orleans Louis A. Martinet Society. Douglas volunteered in legal clinics and was involved in several local and state legal groups.

Federal judicial service

Douglas joined the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana as a United States magistrate judge on January 6, 2019.

On June 15, 2022, President Joe Biden nominated Douglas to serve as United States circuit judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. President Biden nominated Douglas to the seat vacated by Judge James L. Dennis, who announced his intent to assume senior status upon confirmation of a successor. On July 27, 2022, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee. On September 15, 2022, her nomination was favorably reported by the committee by a 16–6 vote. On November 30, 2022, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer filed cloture on her nomination. On December 8, 2022, the United States Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 63–31 vote. On December 13, 2022, her nomination was confirmed by a 65–31 vote. She received her judicial commission on December 16, 2022. She is the first black woman to serve on the Fifth Circuit.

Notable cases

In a 2–1 decision joined by Senior Judge Carolyn Dineen King, Douglas wrote for the majority that Texas must remove the "floating barrier" installed in the Rio Grande in United States vs. Abbott (2023). The barrier was initially built in June 2023, under the direction of Texas Governor Greg Abbott as part of Operation Lone Star, with the goal of countering illegal immigration.

See also

• List of African American federal judges
• List of African American jurists

References

1. "Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved July 26, 2022.
2. Whitaker, Bill (May 5, 2024). "How two high school students solved a 2,000-year-old math puzzle". cbsnews.com. Retrieved May 24, 2024.
3. "New Orleans judge tapped by President Biden for Fifth District Court of Appeals". WDSU. 2022-06-15. Retrieved 2022-06-15.
4. "Johnson v. Dept. of Police, 2 So. 3d 501 | Casetext Search + Citator". casetext.com.
5. "Judge Dana Douglas – Nominee to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit". 5 July 2022.
6. "Patin v. Dep't of Police, 159 So. 3d 476 | Casetext Search + Citator". casetext.com.
7. "Seven new judicial nominees put Biden over the 100-pick marker". www.courthousenews.com. Retrieved 2022-06-15.
8. "Biden nominates New Orleans magistrate for 5th Circuit seat". 15 June 2022.
9. Ebert, Alex (December 15, 2022). "Biden's New Fifth Circuit Judge Brings GOP-Appealing Resume". news.bloomberglaw.com. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
10. "President Biden Names Nineteenth Round of Judicial Nominees". The White House. 2022-06-15. Retrieved 2022-06-15.
11. "Nominations Sent to the Senate" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. June 15, 2022. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
12. "Nominations". Washington, D.C.: United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. July 26, 2022.
13. Ballard, Mark (July 27, 2022). "Dana Douglas receives confirmation hearing for 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals". The Advocate. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
14. "Results of Executive Business Meeting – September 15, 2022" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
15. Alder, Madison. "DC, Fifth Circuit Nominees Advanced by Senate Judiciary Panel".
16. "PN2192 — Doris L. Pryor — The Judiciary". Congress.gov. Retrieved 2023-07-07.
17. "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: Dana M. Douglas, to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Fifth Circuit)". United States Senate. December 8, 2022. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
18. "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Dana M. Douglas, of Louisiana, to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Fifth Circuit)". United States Senate. December 13, 2022. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
19. Dana Douglas at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
20. "New Orleans judge tapped by President Biden for Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals". WDSU. June 15, 2022. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
21. https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ca5.215588/gov.uscourts.ca5.215588.98.0.pdf
22. "Texas must remove floating barrier from Rio Grande, Fifth Circuit Court orders". Texas Tribune. December 1, 2023. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
23. "United States of America, Plaintiff—Appellee, versus Greg Abbott, in his capacity as Governor of the State of Texas; State of Texas, Defendants—Appellants" (PDF). ca5.uscourts.gov. December 1, 2023. Retrieved December 4, 2023.

External links

• Dana Douglas at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.

• 1975 births
• Living people
• 20th-century American women lawyers
• 20th-century American lawyers
• 20th-century African-American lawyers
• 21st-century American women judges
• 21st-century American judges
• 21st-century American women lawyers
• 21st-century American lawyers
• 21st-century African-American lawyers
• African-American judges
• Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
• Lawyers from New Orleans
• Loyola University New Orleans College of Law alumni
• Miami University alumni
• United States court of appeals judges appointed by Joe Biden
• United States magistrate judges