[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 44 (Monday, March 21, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E341]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





                   HONORING CHIEF JUDGE MICHAEL DAVIS

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. KEITH ELLISON

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 21, 2016

  Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the years of 
service of U.S. District Court Chief Judge Michael Davis as he retires 
and assumes senior status in August 2015. Educated at Macalester 
College in St. Paul, and the University of Minnesota Law School, Chief 
Judge Davis has dedicated his career to advancing the highest justice 
and integrity within the legal community. From his early work as law 
clerk for the Legal Rights Center from 1971 to 1973, to his time as an 
attorney in Social Security Administration in Baltimore, to a criminal 
defense lawyer for the Neighborhood Justice Center in 1974, Chief Judge 
Davis has upheld the principled defense of equal justice under the law.
   Returning to the Legal Rights Center as an attorney in 1975, and in 
his later work as an attorney for the Minneapolis Civil Rights 
Commission, he continued his commitment to legal excellence. As a Judge 
for the Hennepin County Municipal Court, he earned a reputation as a 
strong legal mind with a firm devotion to justice. His service to the 
community and legal profession has helped to ensure open and equitable 
access to justice.
   Davis's contribution to the founding of the Pro Se Project in May 
2009, which helps provide litigants in Minnesota with a volunteer 
attorney, demonstrates his passion for fair access to legal counsel for 
all. His influence in the international arena has taken him to Egypt, 
Uganda, and Senegal, where he has offered insight on intellectual 
property law from an American perspective. His travels to Saudi Arabia, 
which facilitated the travel of a group of Saudi Judges to the United 
States to learn about the United States justice system, has no doubt 
enriched the understandings of the global judicial community.
   As a leader in the community, Davis has championed the court's 
involvement in outreach and education, including the 2013 Dred Scott 
Project. This collaboration between the Minnesota District Court, the 
Minnesota chapter of the Federal Bar Association, the Bloomington Human 
Rights Commission, and the Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department 
included bringing historical presentations to high school classrooms in 
Bloomington and the installation of a new plaque for the Dred Scott 
Playing Fields.
   Chief Judge Davis has worked tirelessly to educate and inspire 
future generations of attorneys and judges as an instructor and 
professor at the William Mitchell School of Law, the University of 
Minnesota Law School, and the Minnesota Institute of Legal Education. 
In 1993, he was nominated for federal judicial service as a Judge in 
the U.S. District Court of Minnesota by President Bill Clinton. He has 
served as the first African-American Chief Judge of the District of 
Minnesota since 2008. As Chief Judge of the district, Judge Davis has 
brought diversity and compassionate deliberation to the courts, while 
presiding over pressing budgetary issues and a demanding case-load.
   Chief Judge Davis has led an outstandingly impactful career, defined 
by his impassioned pursuit of integrity under the law and service to 
his community. I wish him all the best in his future endeavors.

                          ____________________