Kim McLane Wardlaw

Infobox Judge
name = Kim McLane Wardlaw

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imagesize =
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office = Judge of United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
termstart = 1998
termend =
nominator = Bill Clinton
appointer =
predecessor =
successor =
office2 = Judge of District Court for the Central District of California
termstart2 = 1995
termend2 = 1998
nominator2 = Bill Clinton
appointer2 =
predecessor2 =
successor2 =
birthdate = Birth date and age|1954|7|2|mf=y
birthplace = San Francisco, California
alma_mater = UCLA
deathdate =
deathplace =
spouse =

Kim McLane Wardlaw (born July 2, 1954) is a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, with chambers in Pasadena, California. Wardlaw, born to a Scottish-Irish father and a Mexican-American mother, is the first Hispanic American woman appointed to a United States Court of Appeals.

Education and legal training

Wardlaw earned a bachelor's degree in communications, summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from UCLA in 1976. She went on to receive a law degree from UCLA in 1979, graduating fifth in her 300-person law school class and receiving the prestigious Order of the Coif. She worked as a law clerk for Judge William P. Gray of the Central District of California, and a legal extern for Judge Joseph Tyree Sneed III of the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Professional career

Wardlaw joined the law firm of O’Melveny & Myers in 1980 as an associate, and worked at the firm for sixteen years, the final ten as a partner in the firm's litigation department.

Political involvement

Wardlaw volunteered for the William J. Clinton for President Campaign in California during the 1991-1992 election season, and later served on Clinton-Gore Presidential Transition Team working with the United States Department of Justice. She was an elected delegate from the 27th District of California to the 1992 Democratic National Convention. In 1993, Wardlaw served on the Executive Committee on Debate Preparation for the Riordan for Mayor Campaign. After volunteering for Richard Riordan’s successful campaign for Mayor of Los Angeles, she worked as his Government Liaison during the mayoral transition.

Federal judicial service

President Clinton nominated Wardlaw to the United States District Court for the Central District of California on August 10, 1995, and the United States Senate confirmed Wardlaw to the post on December 22, 1995. Clinton then nominated Wardlaw to the Ninth Circuit on January 27, 1998. The Senate confirmed Wardlaw's nomination in a voice vote on July 31, 1998. United States Senator Dianne Feinstein had recommended Wardlaw for both posts. "I'm extremely happy and grateful that the president nominated me and the Senate confirmed me," Wardlaw told the Los Angeles Times in an article that appeared on August 1, 1998. "I'm very excited about joining the circuit and looking forward to the challenge, but I'm going to miss my colleagues on the district court very much."

Awards

*“1993 Top 25 Lawyers Under 45” by California Law Business
*"1995 100 Most Prominent Business Attorneys in Los Angeles County” by Los Angeles Business Journal
*“1995 Buddy Award” by National Organization for Women Legal Defense and Education Fund
*2000 Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters by Mount St. Mary’s College
*“2001 Professional Achievement Award” by Mexican American Bar Foundation
*“2004 Alumni of the Year Award for Public and Community Service” by UCLA Law School
*“2005 Maynard Toll Award for Distinguished Public Service” by Los Angeles Legal Aid Foundation
*"2008 Judicial Award" by Hispanic National Bar Foundation

Possible nomination to the Supreme Court

It is widely accepted that Wardlaw would be a front-running candidate if a Supreme Court vacancy should occur under a future Democratic president. [ [http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/the-next-supreme-court-justice/ The Next Supreme Court Justice?] ]

Notable Cases

*"Quon v. Arch Wireless Operating Co., Inc.", 529 F.3d 892, (9th Cir. 2008). Wardlaw, writing for the majority, held that under the Fourth Amendment, employees have a reasonable expectation of privacy in the content of electric messages they send using employer-provided equipment and service.
*"Redding v. Safford Unified School Dist. No.1", 531 F.3d 1071 (9th Cir. 2008) (en banc). Wardlaw, writing for the en banc panel, held that school officials violated the Fourth Amendment by strip-searching a thirteen-year-old female student in search of prescription-strength ibuprofen.
*"Hulteen v. AT & T Corp.", 498 F.3d 1001 (9th Cir. 2007) (en banc). Wardlaw, writing for the en banc panel, held that an employer policy that excluded time spent on pregnancy leave in calculation of service credit for employee pension and retirement benefits violates Title VII.
*"Jones v. City of Los Angeles", 444 F.3d 1118 (9th Cir. 2006). Wardlaw, writing for the majority, held that arresting homeless people for sleeping, sitting, or lying on sidewalks and other public property when other shelter is not available violates the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.
*"Rui One Corp. v. City of Berkeley", 371 F.3d 1137 (9th Cir. 2004). Wardlaw, writing for the majority, upheld the City’s authority to require that a living wage be paid to employees of companies receiving financial benefits from the city.
*"Washington Legal Foundation v. Legal Foundation of Washington", 271 F.3d 835 (9th Cir. 2001) (en banc), "affirmed sub nom. Brown v. Legal Foundation of Washington", 538 U.S. 216 (2003). Wardlaw, writing for the en banc panel, held that rules requiring limited practice officers to place clients' funds into IOLTA (interest on lawyers' trust accounts) accounts did not constitute a taking of the clients' property in violation of the Fifth Amendment.

References

External links

* [http://www.fjc.gov/servlet/tGetInfo?jid=2501 Official Judicial Profile ]
* [http://underneaththeirrobes.blogs.com/main/2004/11/questions_prese.html Interview with the legal tabloid Underneath Their Robes ]
* [http://ms-jd.org/node/175 Ms. JD Profile ]
* [http://www.tnr.com/politics/story.html?id=57762136-6855-44c6-b057-7510b7cb4eda The New Republic on Judge Wardlaw's candidacy for the Supreme Court ]
* [http://www.jtbf.org/index.php?src=directory&view=biographies&srctype=display&refno=103&category=Hispanic%20Judges&PHPSESSID=09c220c788dc8e6fd2476bf8d2b26992 Just the Beginnings Foundation, Judge Biographies]
*UCLA Law Magazine, Now is the Time, Judge Kim Wardlaw, JD 1979.
* [http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/the-democratic-not-so-short-list/ SCOTUSBlog, The Democratic (Not So) Short List, (Jul. 12, 2007)]
*L.A. Judge Confirmed to Ninth Circuit Post, L.A. Times (Aug. 1, 1998)