Toby Heytens
2021 - Present
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Toby Heytens is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit. He was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on July 13, 2021, and confirmed by the United States Senate on November 1, 2021, by a vote of 53-43.[1][2] To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.
The United States Court of Appeals for the 4th 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 his confirmation, Heytens was the solicitor general for the Commonwealth of Virginia.[3]
Judicial nominations and appointments
United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit (2021-present)
- See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden
On July 13, 2021, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Heytens to the United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit. He was confirmed by a 53-43 vote of the U.S. Senate on November 1, 2021.[2] Heytens received commission on November 2, 2021. To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.
Nominee Information |
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Name: Toby Heytens |
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit |
Progress |
Confirmed 111 days after nomination. |
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Questionnaire: Questionnaire |
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Hearing Transcript: Hearing Transcript |
QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more) |
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Confirmation vote
The U.S. Senate confirmed Heytens by a vote of 53-43 on November 1, 2021.[2] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.
Heytens confirmation vote (November 1, 2021) | |||||||||
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Party | Yea | Nay | No vote | ||||||
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47 | 0 | 1 | ||||||
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4 | 43 | 3 | ||||||
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2 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
Total | 53 | 43 | 4 |
Senate Judiciary Committee hearing
The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Heytens' nomination on July 27, 2021. The committee voted to advance Heytens' nomination to the full Senate on September 23, 2021.
Nomination
On June 30, 2021, President Joe Biden (D) announced his intent to nominate Heytens to the United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit.[3] The president officially nominated Heytens on July 13, 2021.[1][2]
Heytens was nominated to replace Judge Barbara Keenan, who assumed senior status on August 31, 2021.[4]
The American Bar Association rated Heytens Well Qualified.[5] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.
Biography
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Heytens earned a B.A. from Macalester College in 1997 and a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2000.[3]
Professional career
- 2021-present: Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit
- 2018-2021: Solicitor general, Commonwealth of Virginia
- 2010-2018: University of Virginia School of Law, Charlottesville, Virginia
- 2014-2018: Professor of law
- 2010-2014: Associate professor of law
- 2007-2010: Assistant to the solicitor general, U.S. Department of Justice
- 2006-2007: Associate professor of law, University of Virginia School of Law, Charlottesville, Virginia
- 2003-2006: Attorney, Supreme Court and Appellate Practice Group, O'Melveny & Myers LLP, Washington, D.C.
- 2002-2003: Law clerk, Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg, United States Supreme Court
- 2001-2002: Bristow fellow, Office of the Solicitor General, U.S. Department of Justice
- 2000-2001: Law clerk, Judge Edward Becker, United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit[3]
About the court
Fourth Circuit |
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Court of Appeals |
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Judgeships |
Posts: 15 |
Judges: 15 |
Vacancies: 0 |
Judges |
Chief: Albert Diaz |
Active judges: Steven Agee, DeAndrea G. Benjamin, Nicole Berner, Albert Diaz, Roger Gregory, Pamela Harris, Toby Heytens, Allison Jones Rushing, Robert King, Paul Niemeyer, A. Marvin Quattlebaum Jr., Julius Richardson, Stephanie Thacker, J. Harvie Wilkinson, James Wynn Senior judges: |
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth 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 Lewis F. Powell Jr. Federal Courthouse in Richmond, Virginia.
The Fourth 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 Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals are petitioned to the Supreme Court of the United States. Chief Justice John Roberts is the circuit justice for the Fourth Circuit.
The court hears appeals from the United States district courts in:
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
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The White House, "Nominations Sent to the Senate," July 13, 2021
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Congress.gov, "PN806 — Toby J. Heytens — The Judiciary," accessed July 14, 2021
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 The White House, "President Biden Names Fifth Round of Judicial Nominees," June 30, 2021
- ↑ Law360, "Judge Keenan's Exit Gives Biden 1st Opening On 4th Circ.," March 1, 2021
- ↑ American Bar Association, "RATINGS OF ARTICLE III AND ARTICLE IV JUDICIAL NOMINEES 117TH CONGRESS," last updated July 27, 2021
Political offices | ||
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Preceded by - |
United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit 2021-Present |
Succeeded by - |
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Commissioned in 2024 |
John Kazen • John Russell • Margaret Garnett • Cristal Brisco • Jacquelyn Austin • Gretchen Hess Lund • Micah Smith • Joshua Kolar • Karoline Mehalchick • Kirk Sherriff • Lisa Wang • David Leibowitz • Jacqueline Becerra • Julie Sneed • Melissa Damian • Kelly H. Rankin • Nicole Berner • Sunil Harjani • Leon Schydlower • Ernesto Gonzalez • Susan Bazis • Robert White • Ann Marie McIff Allen • Eumi Lee • Krissa Lanham • Eric Schulte • Camela Theeler • Angela Martinez • Jasmine Yoon • Nancy Maldonado • Meredith Vacca • Georgia Alexakis • Joseph Saporito • Amy Baggio • Stacey Neumann | ||
Commissioned in 2023 |
Kai Scott • Tamika Montgomery-Reeves • Margaret R. Guzman • Daniel Calabretta • Matthew Garcia • DeAndrea G. Benjamin • Cindy Chung • Adrienne Nelson • Lindsay Jenkins • Gina Méndez-Miró • Araceli Martínez-Olguín • Jamar Walker • Ana Reyes • Jamal Whitehead • Gordon Gallagher • Matthew Brookman• Maria Araujo Kahn• James Simmons • Robert Ballou• Andrew Schopler • Jonathan Grey• Colleen Lawless • Arun Subramanian • Jessica Clarke • Robert Kirsch • Michael Farbiarz • Anthony Johnstone • Orelia Merchant • Wesley Hsu • Bradley Garcia • LaShonda A. Hunt • Nancy Gbana Abudu • Amanda Brailsford • Darrel Papillion • Jeremy Daniel • Hernan D. Vera • Julie Rikelman • Nusrat Choudhury • P. Casey Pitts • Myong Joun • Kymberly Evanson • Tiffany Cartwright • Rachel Bloomekatz • Natasha Merle • Dale Ho • Philip Hadji • Rita Lin • Brendan Hurson • Vernon D. Oliver • Matthew Maddox • Julia Munley • Brandy McMillion • Susan DeClercq • Julia Kobick • Ramon Reyes, Jr. • Ana de Alba • Kenly Kiya Kato • Mónica Ramírez Almadani • Jeffrey M. Bryan • Jamel Semper • Irma Ramirez • Richard Federico • Loren AliKhan • Brandon Long • Jerry Edwards Jr.• Sara Hill • Joseph Laroski | ||
Commissioned in 2022 | David Herrera Urias • Gabriel Sanchez • Holly Thomas • Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong • David Ruiz • Charles Fleming • Bridget Brennan • Leonard Stark • Alison J. Nathan • John Chun • Julie Rubin • Jacqueline Scott Corley • Ruth Bermudez Montenegro • Victoria Calvert • Georgette Castner • Anne Traum • Cristina Silva • Ketanji Brown Jackson (Supreme Court) • Sarah Geraghty • Hector Gonzalez • Fred Slaughter • Jennifer Rochon • Robert Huie • Sunshine S. Sykes • Stephanie Dawkins Davis • Evelyn Padin • Sherilyn P. Garnett • Ana de Alba • J. Michelle Childs • Trina Thompson • Elizabeth Hanes • Nancy Maldonado • Nina Morrison • Gregory Williams • John Z. Lee • Sal Mendoza, Jr. • Lara Montecalvo • Florence Pan • Andre Mathis • Sarah A.L. Merriam • Jennifer Rearden • Roopali Desai • María Antongiorgi-Jordán • Camille Vélez-Rivé • Doris Pryor • Frances Kay Behm • Dana Douglas • Mia Roberts Perez • Anne Nardacci • Jeffery P. Hopkins | ||
Commissioned in 2021 |
Ketanji Brown Jackson • Zahid Quraishi • Julien Xavier Neals • Deborah Boardman • Regina Rodriguez • Candace Jackson-Akiwumi • Lydia Kay Griggsby • Tiffany Cunningham • Eunice Lee • Angel Kelley • Florence Pan • Veronica Rossman • David G. Estudillo • Sarah A.L. Merriam • Gustavo Gelpí • Christine O'Hearn • Margaret Strickland • Karen McGlashan Williams • Patricia Tolliver Giles • Toby Heytens • Michael Nachmanoff • Sarala Nagala • Beth Robinson • Omar A. Williams • Myrna Pérez • Jia Cobb • Tana Lin • Lauren King • Lucy H. Koh • Jennifer Sung • Samantha Elliott • Katherine Menendez • Mary Dimke • Linda Lopez • Shalina Kumar • Jane Beckering • Jinsook Ohta • Jennifer L. Thurston • Stephen Locher • Charlotte Sweeney • Nina Nin-Yuen Wang • Arianna Freeman • Jerry Blackwell |
Federal courts:
Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Virginia, Western District of Virginia • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Virginia, Western District of Virginia
State courts:
Virginia Supreme Court • Virginia Court of Appeals • Virginia Circuit Courts • Virginia District Courts • Virginia Magistrates
State resources:
Courts in Virginia • Virginia judicial elections • Judicial selection in Virginia