Kevin Newsom

Not to be confused with Kevin Newsome.

Kevin Newsom
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
Incumbent
Assumed office
August 2, 2017
Appointed byDonald Trump
Preceded byJoel Fredrick Dubina
Solicitor General of Alabama
In office
December 2003 – June 2007
Attorney GeneralWilliam H. Pryor Jr.
Troy King
Preceded byNathan A. Forrester
Succeeded byCorey L. Maze
Personal details
Born
Kevin Christopher Newsom

(1972-09-22) September 22, 1972 (age 52)
Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
Spouse
Deborah E. Wilgus
​
(m. 1994)​
Children2
EducationSamford University (BA)
Harvard University (JD)

Kevin Christopher Newsom (born September 22, 1972)[1] is an American attorney and jurist serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.

Early life and education

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Kevin Newsom was born in Birmingham, Alabama, to Susan and Michael Alan Newsom. His father was an attorney. Newsom attended Homewood High School in Birmingham.[2] Both of his parents had issues with alcoholism.[3]

In 1994, Newsom received a Bachelor of Arts, summa cum laude, from Samford University, graduating first in his class. In 1997, he graduated from Harvard Law School with a Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, where he was the articles editor of the Harvard Law Review.[4]

Career

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After graduation, Newsom served as a law clerk to Judge Diarmuid O'Scannlain of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He then clerked for Justice David Souter of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1998 to 1999.[5]

Between and after his clerkships, he worked for Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C. In December 2003, he was appointed the State of Alabama's second Solicitor General, replacing Nathan A. Forrester, and served for three and a half years under state Attorneys General William H. Pryor Jr. and Troy King.[6][7][8] While serving as Solicitor General, Newsom argued 18 cases, including 3 before the United States Supreme Court.[9] Afterwards, Newsom was a partner at Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP in Birmingham, where his practice focused on appellate law.[10][11]

Newsom serves on the Board of Overseers of Samford University.[12] He is a member of the Federalist Society and the American Law Institute.[13][14]

Federal judicial service

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On May 8, 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Newsom to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit vacated by Judge Joel Fredrick Dubina, who assumed senior status on October 26, 2013.[15][16][17][18] A hearing on his nomination before the Senate Judiciary Committee took place on June 14, 2017.[19] On July 13, 2017, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 18–2 vote.[20] On July 31, 2017, the United States Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by a 68–26 vote.[21] On August 1, 2017, his nomination was confirmed by a 66–31 vote.[22] He received his judicial commission on August 2, 2017.[23]

In June 2020, Newsom wrote for the divided panel when it vacated a lower court's injunction ordering the Miami-Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation Department to enforce social distancing and take other preventative measures to protect prisoners from COVID-19.[24][25]

On May 23, 2022, Newsom, joined by Tjoflat and Ed Carnes, ruled in Moody v. NetChoice that several provisions of Florida's social media moderation law were unconstitutional, but several others were constitutional. [26] The Supreme Court remanded the case in July 2024. [27]

Personal life

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In 1994, Newsom married Deborah E. Wilgus, who also attended Samford University, and they have two children.[4][2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "AFJ Nominee Report: Kevin Newsom" (PDF). Alliance for Justice. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 2, 2017. Retrieved December 2, 2017.
  2. ^ a b "Engagements: Wilgus-Newsom". Orlando Sentinel. May 5, 1994. Archived from the original on September 15, 2015. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  3. ^ "Finding Your Voice: A Sitdown with Judge Newsom". Virginia Law Weekly. February 21, 2018. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Kevin C. Newsom". Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP. Archived from the original on May 8, 2017. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  5. ^ Peppers, Todd C. (2006). Courtiers of the Marble Palace. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press. p. 231. ISBN 0804753822.
  6. ^ Lat, David. "Articles on Kevin Newsom". Above the Law. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  7. ^ Gibeut, John (August 11, 2006). "It's All in the Execution". American Bar Association Journal. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  8. ^ Mahoney, Ryan (February 8, 2004). "Ex-state solicitor general joins Bradley Arant staff". Birmingham Business Journal. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  9. ^ Newsom, Kevin (March 13, 2013). "The State Solicitor General Boom". www.americanbar.org. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
  10. ^ Page, Peter (August 18, 2008). "State solicitor general appointments open doors for appellate practitioners" (PDF). National Law Journal. Retrieved October 19, 2017. Posted at Bradley Arant LLP website.
  11. ^ "U.S. Supreme Court oral arguments of Kevin Newsom". Oyez.com. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  12. ^ "Board of Overseers Members". Samford University. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  13. ^ "Kevin C. Newsom". Federalist Society. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  14. ^ "Membership roster". American Law Institute. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  15. ^ Adler, Jonathan H. (May 7, 2017). "Here come Trump's judges: President to put forward more strong judicial nominees". Washington Post. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  16. ^ "Presidential Nomination 372, 115th United States Congress". United States Congress. May 8, 2017. Retrieved June 30, 2018.
  17. ^ "Congressional Record". www.congress.gov.
  18. ^ "Nine Nominations Sent to the Senate Today". The White House. May 8, 2017. Archived from the original on May 15, 2017.
  19. ^ United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Nominations for June 14, 2017
  20. ^ Results of Executive Business Meeting – July 13, 2017 Senate Judiciary Committee
  21. ^ On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on Kevin Christopher Newsom, of Alabama, to be U.S. Circuit Judge), United States Senate, July 31, 2017
  22. ^ On the Nomination (Confirmation Kevin Christopher Newsom, of Alabama, to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Eleventh Circuit), United States Senate, August 1, 2017
  23. ^ Kevin Newsom at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  24. ^ Note, Recent Case: Eleventh Circuit Holds that a Florida Jail Was Not Deliberately Indifferent to the Spread of COVID-19, 134 Harv. L. Rev. 2622 (2021).
  25. ^ Swain v. Junior, 961 F.3d 1276 (11th Cir. 2020).
  26. ^ "NetChoice, LLC v. Attorney Gen". casetext. May 23, 2022. Retrieved August 31, 2024.
  27. ^ "Moody v. NetChoice, LLC". SCOTUSBlog. Retrieved August 31, 2024.

Selected works

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[edit]
Legal offices
Preceded by
Nathan A. Forrester
 Solicitor General of Alabama
2003–2007 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
2017–present 		Incumbent
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