After Nearly Five Years, Senate Fills Judicial Vacancy on Wisconsin District Court

Byron B. Conway was the second nominee President Biden tried to fill the role.

The U.S. Senate today held a recorded vote to confirm one individual as an Article III federal judge. With this confirmation, 213 judges nominated by President Joe Biden have now been confirmed by the Senate. With today’s action, 166 of Biden’s judicial nominees have been approved for service on federal district courts.

In a 58-37 vote, Byron B. Conway was confirmed as a Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. He is Biden’s first confirmation to the 5-person court, with no additional vacancies at this time. Once commissioned, he will become the youngest judge serving on this court.

Conway assumes the Green Bay-based seat previously held by William C. Griesbach, who took senior status in December 2019. A nominee of President George W. Bush, Griesbach served on this court from 2002 to 2019 and was Chief Judge from 2012 to 2019. Conway was nominated to this seat on the federal judiciary by Biden in July 2024.

Conway’s legal career started as an associate at Gimbel Reilly Guerin & Brown LLP in Milwaukee from 2002 to 2006. Since 2006, he has worked at Habush, Habush & Rottier SC in Green Bay - becoming a shareholder at the firm in 2010.

Notably, Conway is the second individual Biden has nominated to fill this vacancy on the district court in Wisconsin. In December 2021, he tapped Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge William Pocan for the position. However, Senator Ron Johnson, a Republican, withheld his blue slip - which effectively blocked Pocan from receiving a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Pocan’s nomination was officially withdrawn in January 2023.