Public Defender Richard Federico Confirmed as Judge for Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals
Federico becomes the 162nd judge overall to be confirmed since Joe Biden became President.
The U.S. Senate today held a recorded vote to confirm one individual as an Article III federal judge. With this confirmation, 162 judges nominated by President Joe Biden have now been confirmed by the Senate. With today’s action, 39 of Biden’s judicial nominees have been approved for service on federal appellate courts.
In a 61-29 vote, Richard E.N. Federico was confirmed as a Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He is Biden’s second confirmation to the 12-person court, with no additional vacancies at this time.
Federico assumes the Lawrence, Kansas-based seat previously held by Mary Beck Briscoe, who assumed senior status in March 2021. A nominee of President Bill Clinton, Briscoe served on the court from 1995 to 2021 and was Chief Judge from 2010 to 2015. Federico was nominated to this seat on the federal judiciary by Biden in July 2023.
Federico is a Captain in the U.S. Navy Reserve, Judge Advocate General’s Corps - serving in the U.S. Navy JAG Corps as a prosecutor from 2002 to 2008 and as a defense counsel from 2008 to 2015. He has been a Military Judge for the Navy Reserve Trial Judiciary since 2019, and was previously Appellate Defense Counsel from 2015 to 2019.
In addition to his military service, Federico joined the Office of the Federal Public Defender for the District of Kansas in 2017. He served as a Research and Writing Specialist from 2017 to 2018, an Assistant Federal Public Defender from 2018 to 2020, and as a Senior Litigator since 2020.
The Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit covers appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Utah and Wyoming.