Margaret Garnett

Southern District of New York
	Second Circuit
Judgeships
	Posts: 28
	Judges: 26
	Vacancies: 2
Judges
	Chief: Laura Swain
	Active judges: Ronnie Abrams, Vernon Broderick, Andrew L. Carter Jr., Jessica Clarke, John Peter Cronan, Paul A. Engelmayer, Katherine Failla, Jesse Furman, Margaret Garnett, Philip M. Halpern, Dale Ho, Kenneth Karas, John Koeltl, Lewis Liman, James Paul Oetken, Edgardo Ramos, Jennifer Rearden, Jennifer Rochon, Nelson S. Roman, Cathy Seibel, Arun Subramanian, Laura Swain, Analisa Torres, Jeannette Vargas, Mary Kay Vyskocil, Gregory Howard Woods; Senior judges:; Richard Berman, Vincent L. Briccetti, Naomi Buchwald, Valerie Caproni, Kevin Castel, Denise Cote, Paul Crotty, George Daniels, Paul Gardephe, Charles Haight, Alvin Hellerstein, Lewis Kaplan, John Keenan, Victor Marrero, Colleen McMahon, Loretta Preska, Jed Rakoff, Lorna Schofield, Louis Stanton, Sidney Stein, Kimba Wood

Nomination Tracker
Nominee Information
	Name: Margaret Garnett
	Court: United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
Progress
	Confirmed 140 days after nomination.
	Nominated: July 11, 2023
	ABA Rating: Well qualified
	Questionnaire: Questionnaire
	Hearing: July 26, 2023
	Hearing Transcript: Hearing Transcript
	QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more)
	Reported: September 14, 2023
	Confirmed: November 28, 2023
	Vote: 49-46

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Margaret Garnett is a judge on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. She was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on July 11, 2023, and confirmed by the United States Senate on November 28, 2023, by a vote of 49-46. Garnett will join the court upon receiving her judicial commission and taking her judicial oath.^[1]^[2] To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.

The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is one of 94 U.S. District Courts. They are the general trial courts of the United States federal courts. To learn more about the court, click here.

Prior to joining the court, Garnett was a Special Counsel to the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.^[3]

Judicial nominations and appointments

United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (2024-present)

See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

On July 11, 2023, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Garnett to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. She was confirmed by the United States Senate by a vote of 49-46 on November 28, 2023.^[1] Garnett received commission on January 9, 2024.^[2] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.

Confirmation vote

The U.S. Senate confirmed Garnett by a vote of 49-46 on November 28, 2023.^[1] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.

Garnett confirmation vote (November 28, 2023)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	44	0	4
Republican	2	46	1
Independent	3	0	0
Total	49^[4]	46	5

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Garnett's nomination on July 26, 2023. Garnett was reported to the full Senate on September 14, 2023, after a 12-9 committee vote.^[5]

Nomination

On June 28, 2023, President Joe Biden (D) announced his intent to nominate Garnett to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.^[3] The president officially nominated Garnett on July 11, 2023.^[1] Click here for a list of other nominees who have been nominated by President Joe Biden.

The American Bar Association (ABA) rated Garnett well qualified.^[6] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.

Garnett was nominated to replace Judge Vincent L. Briccetti, who assumed senior status on April 21, 2023.<FJC/>

Biography

Education

Garnett earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame in 1992. She earned master's degrees from Yale University in 1995 and 1997. Garnett earned a J.D. from Columbia Law School in 2000.^[3]

Professional career

2024-present: Judge, United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
2024: Special Counsel to the United States Attorney, Southern District of New York
2021-2023: Deputy United States Attorney, Southern District of New York
2018-2021: Commissioner of the New York City Department of Investigation
2017-2018: Executive Deputy Attorney General for Criminal Justice, New York State Attorney General’s Office
2005-2017: Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York
- 2016-2017: Chief of Appeals
- 2011-2014: Chief of the Violent Crimes/Violent & Organized Crime Unit
2004-2005: Law clerk, Judge Gerard E. Lynch on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York^[3]
2000-2004: Associate, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz L.L.P.^[3]

About the court

The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is one of 94 United States district courts. The Southern District is one of the most influential and active federal district courts in the United States, largely because of its jurisdiction over New York's major financial centers. When decisions of the court are appealed, they are appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit based in Lower Manhattan at the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Federal Courthouse.

Jurisdiction

The Counties of the Southern District of New York (click for larger map)

The Southern District of New York has original jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.

The court shares geographic jurisdiction over New York City with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, which manages Brooklyn, Queens, and Richmond (Staten Island) counties, along with Nassau and Suffolk on Long Island.

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.