In some business decisions, Obama's judicial appellate appointees shift law to the left
Photo of President Barack Obama by Evan El-Amin / Shutterstock.com.
Federal appeals judges appointed by President Obama make up a little less than a third of active circuit court judges, and their influence is beginning to have an impact in some business-related cases.
Since 2009, 55 of Obama’s appellate appointees have been confirmed, and 31 replaced replaced judges appointed by Republican presidents, Law.com (sub. req.) reports.
Kannon Shanmugam, who leads the appellate practice at Williams & Connolly, tells Law.com that, “Over the last eight years the courts of appeals have become decidedly less friendly to business overall.” Shanmugam adds that the U.S. Supreme Court “has served as something as a check on those courts.”
Among the changes: The Richmond, Virginia-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was among the most conservative appeals courts in the nation before Obama took office. Now the court has six Obama appointees out of 15 active judges, and “there’s been a noticeable ideological flip,” the article says.
On the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, Obama appointees have written or co-written opinions rejecting challenges to executive action by Obama and upholding net-neutrality rules by the Federal Communications Commission.
Hogan Lovells appellate litigator Mary Helen Wimberly noted two important appeals court rulings by Obama appointees on behalf of class action plaintiffs. One allowed a regional class action by Wal-Mart employees against the retailer after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a nationwide class action. The other upheld a $1 billion judgment against Dow Chemical in a price-fixing class action.
A Law.com graphic shows the number of Obama appointees by circuit. The most Obama appointees are on the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. They each have seven Obama appointees. Circuits with five Obama appointees each are the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The fewest number of Obama appointees are on the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and the St. Louis-based 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. They each have one Obama appointee.
