Jerry Edwards Jr. Becomes First Person of Color to Serve as a Judge in Western Louisiana

Edwards is the 163rd federal judge to be confirmed during the Biden administration.

The U.S. Senate today held a recorded vote to confirm one individual as an Article III federal judge. With this confirmation, 163 judges nominated by President Joe Biden have now been confirmed by the Senate. With today’s action, 123 of Biden’s judicial nominees have been approved for service on federal district courts.

In a 66-24 vote, Jerry Edwards Jr. was confirmed as a Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana. He is Biden’s first confirmation to the 7-person court, with one additional vacancy awaiting an official nominee.

Edwards assumes the Lafayette-based seat previously held by Michael J. Juneau, who took senior status in February 2022 due to a certified disability. A nominee of President Donald Trump, Juneau served on this court from 2018 to 2022. He died in May 2023 at age 60. Edwards was nominated to this seat on the federal judiciary by Biden in June 2023.

From 2006 to 2019, Edwards worked at Blanchard, Walker, O’Guin & Roberts, APLC in Shreveport - first as an associate from 2006 to 2014 and then as a shareholder and director from 2014 to 2019. Since 2019, he has served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Louisiana - serving as the Chief of the Civil Division from 2020 to 2022. Once commissioned, Edwards will become the first person of color to serve as a judge on this court.