[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 109 (Wednesday, June 23, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4719-S4720]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                   Nomination of Deborah L. Boardman

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I rise this afternoon in support of the 
nomination of U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah Boardman to be a U.S. 
district judge for the District of Maryland.
  Judge Boardman was favorably reported by the Judiciary Committee on 
June 10. I have recommended Judge Boardman, along with Senator Van 
Hollen, to President Biden, and I strongly support her nomination. 
Judge Boardman was nominated to fill the future vacancy created when 
Judge Richard Bennett, appointed by President Bush in 2003, announced 
his intentions to take senior status upon the confirmation of his 
successor. President Biden nominated Judge Boardman for this position 
on March 30, and the Judiciary Committee held her confirmation hearing 
on May 12.
  Shortly after the November 2020 Presidential election, I worked with 
Senator Van Hollen to establish a judicial selection committee in 
Maryland. We used an open application process with public advertisement 
and communicated closely with the State, local, and specialty bar 
associations in Maryland. In particular, we sought out a highly 
qualified and diverse applicant pool.
  Our committee interviewed everyone who submitted an application, 
which involved several dozen interviews. Senator Van Hollen and I 
personally interviewed several finalists before making our 
recommendations to the White House.
  I strongly agree with President Biden's request that Senators 
consider nominating individuals whose legal experiences have been 
historically underrepresented on the Federal bench, including those who 
are public defenders, civil rights and legal aid attorneys, and those 
who represent Americans in every walk of life. Judge Boardman fits that 
request.
  Judge Deborah Boardman was born in Silver Spring, raised in 
Frederick, and lives in Baltimore. She received a B.A. from Villanova 
University. After graduating from college, she accepted a Fulbright 
scholarship to study in Amman, Jordan. She received her J.D. from the 
University of Virginia School of Law. After law school, she clerked for 
a Federal judge in the Eastern District of Virginia, known as the 
``rocket docket'' for the speed of its caseload.
  Judge Boardman brings tremendous experience to the courtroom as a 
sitting U.S. magistrate judge in Maryland since 2019, which is the same 
Federal judicial district in which she would become a district judge, 
if confirmed by the Senate. She already handles a heavy caseload in our 
Federal court.
  As a magistrate judge, Judge Boardman presides over civil cases by 
consent of the parties, resolves civil discovery disputes, conducts 
settlement conferences, and presides over preliminary criminal 
proceedings. Additionally, she administers the District of Maryland's 
Social Security appeals docket.
  In civil cases before her by consent of the parties, Judge Boardman 
rules on motions to dismiss, resolves discovery disputes, decides 
whether a case should proceed to trial, and presides over bench and 
jury trials. These cases have involved claims of unemployment 
discrimination in violation of title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 
1964, the Americans With Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act; 
claims under 42 United States Code 1983, the Fair Labor Standards Act, 
the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act; qualified and sovereign 
immunity defenses; and State law claims stemming from contract disputes 
and personal injuries.
  As you can see, she has broad experience in regards to her tenure as 
a magistrate judge. She has previously served as the First Assistant 
Federal Public Defender of Maryland. During her 11-year tenure with the 
Federal Defender's Office, Judge Boardman represented individuals in 
both the Greenbelt and Baltimore courthouses that were charged with 
Federal crimes.
  She also has experience in private practice, as she served as a 
litigation associate at Hogan Lovells, formerly known as Hogan & 
Hartson, in Washington, DC, from 2001 to 2008. During

[[Page S4720]]

those years, Judge Boardman worked exclusively on civil matters. She 
has experience both on the civil side and criminal side. She 
represented a wide range of corporate and individual clients in State 
and Federal courts. Specifically, she counseled insurance companies, 
universities, and healthcare and pharmaceutical companies, among 
others, in business and contract disputes.
  As a fifth-year associate, the firm selected Judge Boardman to serve 
as the senior pro bono associate in its nationally recognized pro bono 
department. She managed the firm's largest pro bono cases full-time and 
appeared in Federal and State courts as the lead attorney in several of 
these pro bono cases.
  She tried a wrongful eviction action before a DC jury. She was lead 
counsel on a 3-day evidentiary hearing on habeas corpus petitions in 
the circuit court for the city of Norfolk. She argued numerous 
discovery motions before the U.S. magistrate judge in the District 
Court for the District of Columbia in an unemployment discrimination 
class-action lawsuit.
  The American Bar Association's Standing Committee on the Federal 
Judiciary gave Judge Boardman its highest, unanimous ``well qualified'' 
recommendation after evaluating her integrity, professional competence, 
and judicial temperament.
  As Judge Boardman said at her confirmation hearing, she is the 
daughter of the American Revolution on her father's side and a first-
generation American of Palestinian descent on her mother's side. Her 
father was born in New York and was drafted to serve in the U.S. Army 
in the Vietnam war and then went on to be a successful businessman. Her 
mother was born in Ramallah, a Palestinian city in the West Bank. She 
immigrated to the United States in the 1950s with her parents and eight 
brothers and sisters when she was just 13 years of age. She spoke no 
English. When she began attending public school in suburban Maryland, 
she then learned, of course, English and went on to a successful career 
as a beautician.
  Judge Boardman has testified that her parents taught her the value of 
hard work, the importance of education, the value of family, and the 
need to be generous to those who are less fortunate in life.
  In my discussions and meetings with Judge Boardman, I have some 
impressions that stand out from her as a person. She is fully committed 
to public service through her diverse professional career as a lawyer, 
law firm partner, public defender, and now a U.S. magistrate judge. She 
regards being a sitting judge as the ultimate and highest calling of 
public service in the legal profession. She wants to inspire the 
public's confidence in the judiciary and to hear parties' concerns 
compassionately, while upholding her duty to fairly apply the law. Now 
as a U.S. magistrate judge, Judge Boardman has told me she understands 
the absolute importance of adjudicating disputes neutrally and fairly.
  She clearly has the temperament for this position. She has told me 
that she is naturally curious and tries to avoid making assumptions.
  Judge Boardman shared with me that her internal compass directed her 
toward service. Judges are first and foremost public servants, but they 
hold certain powers over individuals' lives. She understands that. In 
her view, a district court judgeship is much more than achievement; it 
is a serious public responsibility which requires a judge to put the 
public first as they uphold the rule of law.
  Numerous individuals wrote to me on Judge Boardman's behalf, 
including several sitting judges, law firm associates, and colleagues 
from her service in the public defender's office. They unanimously 
praise Judge Boardman's courtroom skills as a litigator, in particular 
praising her courtroom presence, sharp legal and analytical skills in 
both written and legal advocacy, and her high level of professionalism, 
excellent temperament, and unfailing courtesy to all parties.
  As a person, I have repeatedly been told by those who know her well 
that Judge Boardman is the best kind of person to be a judge. She is 
smart, patient, kind, and tough when she needs to be. She is a hard 
worker. She sees all sides of an argument and is always fair and 
professional in her treatment of others.
  I was delighted to recommend the nomination of Judge Boardman to 
President Biden, along with Senator Van Hollen. Judicial nominees must 
meet the highest standard of integrity, competency, and temperament. 
Judge Boardman will safeguard the rights of all Marylanders and all 
Americans, uphold the Constitution and rule of law, and faithfully 
follow the judicial oath to do equal right to the poor and to the rich. 
I am confident that Judge Boardman will serve the people of Maryland 
very well once she is confirmed.
  I urge my colleagues to vote for the confirmation of Judge Boardman, 
who is an outstanding judicial nominee from Maryland. She is already a 
sitting U.S. magistrate judge on the U.S. District Court for the 
District of Maryland, where she has served with district judges. I look 
forward to her continued public service to Maryland and to the Nation.
  With that, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Smith). The Senator from Oklahoma.
  Mr. INHOFE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to speak as if 
in morning business for such time as I shall consume.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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