Veronica Rossman

Veronica Rossman is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit. She was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on May 12, 2021, and confirmed by the United States Senate on September 20, 2021, by a vote of 50-42.^[1][2] To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.

The United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit is one of 13 U.S. courts of appeal. They are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal courts. To learn more about the court, click here.

Prior to her nomination, Rossman was a senior counsel with the Office of the Federal Public Defender for the Districts of Colorado and Wyoming.^[3]

Judicial nominations and appointments

United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit (2021-present)

See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

On May 12, 2021, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Rossman to the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit. She was confirmed by a 50-42 vote of the U.S. Senate on September 20, 2021. Rossman received commission on September 28, 2021.^[1][2][4] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.

Nomination Tracker
Nominee Information
Name: Veronica Rossman
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit
Progress
Confirmed 131 days after nomination.
Nominated: May 12, 2021
ABA Rating: Substantial Majority Qualified/Minority Well Qualified
Questionnaire: Questionnaire
Hearing: June 9, 2021
QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more)
Reported: July 15, 2021
Confirmed: September 20, 2021
Vote: 50-42

Confirmation vote

The U.S. Senate confirmed Rossman on September 20, 2021, on a vote of 50-42.^[1] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.

Rossman confirmation vote (September 20, 2021)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	46	0	2
Republican	2	42	6
Independent	2	0	0
Total	50	42	8

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Rossman's nomination on June 9, 2021. The committee voted to advance Rossman's nomination to the full Senate on July 15, 2021.

Nomination

On May 12, 2021, President Joe Biden (D) announced his intent to nominate Rossman to the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit.^[3] The president officially nominated Rossman on the same day.^[1][2]

Rossman was nominated to replace Judge Carlos Lucero, who assumed senior status on February 1, 2021.^[2]

The American Bar Association rated Rossman Qualified by a substantial majority and Well Qualified by a minority.^[5] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.

Education

Rossman earned a bachelor's degree from Columbia University in 1993. She earned a J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 1997.^[3]

Professional career

• 2021-present: Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit
• 2010 - 2021: Senior counsel, Office of the Federal Public Defender for the Districts of Colorado and Wyoming
  • 2017 - 2021: Senior counsel
  • 2015-2017: Appellate Division Chief
  • 2010-2015: Assistant federal public defender in the Appellate Division
• 2008-2010: Visiting professor, University of Denver, Sturm College of Law
• 2007-2008: Staff attorney, United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit
• 2004-2005: Attorney, Mastbaum and Moffat
• 2003: Assistant federal defender, Trial Division, Districts of Colorado and Wyoming
• 1998-2002: Litigation associate, Morrison & Foerster, LLP
• 1997-1998: Law clerk for Chief Judge A. William Maupin, Nevada Supreme Court^[3]

About the court

Tenth Circuit
Court of Appeals
Judgeships
Posts: 12
Judges: 12
Vacancies: 0
Judges
Chief: Jerome Holmes
Active judges: Robert Bacharach, Joel Carson, Allison Eid, Richard Federico, Harris Hartz, Jerome Holmes, Scott Matheson, Carolyn McHugh, Nancy Moritz, Gregory Alan Phillips, Veronica Rossman, Timothy Tymkovich Senior judges: Stephen Anderson, Bobby Baldock, Mary Briscoe, Wade Brorby, David Ebel, Paul Kelly, Carlos F. Lucero, Michael R. Murphy, Terrence O'Brien, John Porfilio, Stephanie Seymour

The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit is a federal appellate court with appellate jurisdiction. It hears appeals from all of the circuit courts within its jurisdiction and its rulings may be appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States. Appeals are heard in the Byron White U.S. Courthouse in Denver.

One judge from the Tenth Circuit has served on the Supreme Court of the United States. Neil Gorsuch was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2017 by Donald Trump (R).

The 10th Circuit has appellate jurisdiction over cases heard in one of its subsidiary districts. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law. Appeals of rulings by the 10th Circuit are petitioned to the Supreme Court of the United States. Justice Neil Gorsuch is the circuit justice for the 10th Circuit.

The United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit has jurisdiction over the United States district courts in the following federal judicial districts:

• District of Colorado
• District of Kansas
• District of New Mexico
• Eastern District of Oklahoma
• Northern District of Oklahoma
• Western District of Oklahoma
• District of Utah
• District of Wyoming

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.

See also

• United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit

External links

• Search Google News for this topic
• United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
• Biography from the Federal Judicial Center

Footnotes