Mary Kay Costello

Eastern District of Pennsylvania
	Third Circuit
Judgeships
	Posts: 22
	Judges: 22
	Vacancies: 0
Judges
	Chief: Mitchell Goldberg
	Active judges: ; Wendy Beetlestone, Mary Kay Costello, Paul Diamond, John Gallagher, Mitchell Goldberg, Catherine Henry, Kelley Hodge, Mark A. Kearney, Chad F. Kenney Sr., Joseph F. Leeson Jr., Karen Marston, Gerald Austin McHugh Jr., John Frank Murphy, Gerald J. Pappert, Mia Roberts Perez, Nitza I. Quinones Alejandro, Juan Sanchez, Jeffrey L. Schmehl, Kai Scott, Gail Weilheimer, Joshua Wolson, John M. Younge; Senior judges:; Harvey Bartle, Michael Baylson, Anita Brody, Ronald Buckwalter, Legrome Davis, Jan DuBois, Darnell Jones, Robert Kelly, John Padova Sr., Eduardo Robreno, Cynthia Rufe, Timothy J. Savage, Berle Schiller, Joel Slomsky, Richard Barclay Surrick, Petrese Tucker, William Yohn

Nomination Tracker
Nominee Information
	Name: Mary Kay Costello
	Court: United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Progress
	Confirmed 96 days after nomination.
	Nominated: June 13, 2024
	ABA Rating: Well qualified
	Questionnaire: Questionnaire
	Hearing: July 10, 2024
	Hearing Transcript: Hearing Transcript
	QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more)
	Reported: August 1, 2024
	Confirmed: September 17, 2024
	Vote: 52-41

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Mary Kay Costello is a judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. She was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on June 13, 2024, and confirmed by the United States Senate on September 17, 2024, by a vote of 52-41.^[1]^[2]^[3] To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania 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, Costello was an Assistant United States Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.^[4]^[3]

Judicial nominations and appointments

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (2024-present)

See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

On June 13, 2024, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Costello to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.^[3] Costello received commission on September 17, 2024.^[1] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.

Confirmation vote

The U.S. Senate confirmed Costello by a vote of 52-41 on September 17, 2024.^[2] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.

Costello confirmation vote (September 17, 2024)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	45	0	2
Republican	4	41	4
Independent	3	0	1
Total	52^[5]	41	7

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Costello's nomination on July 10, 2024. Costello was reported to the full Senate on August 1, 2024, after a 13-7 committee vote.^[6] Click here for a list of other nominees awaiting a committee vote.

Nomination

On June 13, 2024, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Mary Kay Costello to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

The American Bar Association (ABA) rated Costello well qualified.^[7] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.

Costello was nominated to replace Judge Cynthia Rufe, who assumed senior status on December 31, 2021.^[8]

Biography

Education

Costello was born in 1968 in Bristol, Pennsylvania. She earned a bachelor's degree from Temple University in 1998 and a law degree from Temple University Beasley School of Law in 2001.^[4]^[1]

Professional career

2024-Present: Judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
2008-2024: an Assistant United States Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
2004-2008: litigation associate, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP
2001-2004: litigation associate, Saul Ewing LLP
1986-1994: U.S. Air Force^[4]^[1]

About the court

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania is one of 94 United States district courts. It is one of the original thirteen federal judiciary districts created by the Judiciary Act of 1789.

When decisions of the court are appealed, they are appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit based in downtown Philadelphia at the James Byrne Courthouse.

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

The geographic jurisdiction of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania consists of all the following counties in the eastern part of the state:

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.