Richard Federico

Tenth Circuit
	Court of Appeals
Judgeships
	Posts: 12
	Judges: 12
	Vacancies: 0
Judges
	Chief: Jerome Holmes
	Active judges: Robert Bacharach, Joel Carson, Allison Eid, Richard Federico, Harris Hartz, Jerome Holmes, Scott Matheson, Carolyn McHugh, Nancy Moritz, Gregory Alan Phillips, Veronica Rossman, Timothy Tymkovich; Senior judges:; Stephen Anderson, Bobby Baldock, Mary Briscoe, Wade Brorby, David Ebel, Paul Kelly, Carlos F. Lucero, Michael R. Murphy, Terrence O'Brien, John Porfilio, Stephanie Seymour

Nomination Tracker
Nominee Information
	Name: Richard Federico
	Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
Progress
	Confirmed 137 days after nomination.
	Nominated: July 27, 2023
	ABA Rating: Well Qualified
	Questionnaire: Questionnaire
	Hearing: September 6, 2023
	Hearing Transcript: Hearing Transcript
	QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more)
	Reported: September 28, 2023
	Confirmed: December 11, 2023
	Vote: 61-29

float:right;
border:1px solid #FFB81F;
background-color: white;
width: 250px;
font-size: .9em;
margin-bottom:0px;

} .infobox p { margin-bottom: 0; } .widget-row { display: inline-block; width: 100%; margin-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 1px; } .widget-row.heading { font-size: 1.2em; } .widget-row.value-only { text-align: center; background-color: grey; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.value-only.white { background-color: #f9f9f9; } .widget-row.value-only.black { background-color: #f9f9f9; color: black; } .widget-row.Democratic { background-color: #003388; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Republican { background-color: red; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Independent, .widget-row.Nonpartisan, .widget-row.Constitution { background-color: grey; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Libertarian { background-color: #f9d334; color: black; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Green { background-color: green; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-key { width: 43%; display: inline-block; padding-left: 10px; vertical-align: top; font-weight: bold; } .widget-value { width: 57%; float: right; display: inline-block; padding-left: 10px; word-wrap: break-word; } .widget-img { width: 150px; display: block; margin: auto; } .clearfix { clear: both; }

Richard Federico is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on July 27, 2023, and confirmed by the United States Senate on December 11, 2023, by a vote of 61-29.^[1]To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth 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 joining the court, Federico worked in the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the District of Kansas.^[2]

Judicial nominations and appointments

United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (2023-present)

See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

On July 27, 2023, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Federico to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 11, 2023, by a vote of 61-29.^[1] Federico received commission on December 13, 2023.^[3] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.

Confirmation vote

The U.S. Senate confirmed Federico by a vote of 61-29 on December 11, 2023.^[1] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.

Richard Federico confirmation vote (December 11, 2023)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	42	0	6
Republican	16	29	4
Independent	3	0	0
Total	61^[4]	29	10

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Federico's nomination on September 6, 2023. Federico was reported to the full Senate on September 28, 2023, after a 13-8 committee vote.^[1]

Nomination

On July 27, 2023, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Federico to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

Federico was nominated to replace Judge Mary Briscoe, who assumed senior status on March 15, 2021.^[5]

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

Biography

Education

Federico received his B.A. from Indiana University in 1999, his J.D. from the University of Kansas School of Law in 2002, and his LL.M. from Georgetown University Law Center in 2012.^[7]

Professional career

2023-present: Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
2020-2023: Senior Litigator, Federal Public Defender for the District of Kansas^[7]
2019-2023: Military Judge, Navy Reserve Trial Judiciary
2018-2020: Assistant Federal Public Defender, Federal Public Defender for the District of Kansas
2017-2018: Research and Writing Specialist, Federal Public Defender for the District of Kansas
2015-2019: Appellate Defense Counsel , Navy Reserve Trial Judiciary
2015-2017: Assistant Federal Public Defender, the United States District Court for the District of Oregon
2002-2008: Prosecutor, U.S. Navy JAG Corps

About the court

The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth 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 Byron White U.S. Courthouse in Denver.

One judge from the Tenth Circuit has served on the Supreme Court of the United States. Neil Gorsuch was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2017 by Donald Trump (R).

Map of the Tenth Circuit. Click on a district to find out more about it.

The Tenth 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 Tenth Circuit are petitioned to the Supreme Court of the United States. Justice Neil Gorsuch is the circuit justice for the Tenth Circuit.

The United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit has jurisdiction over the United States district courts in the following federal judicial districts:

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.