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DC Circuit's Kavanaugh Replacement Announced

By George Khoury, Esq. on November 15, 2018 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

The federal circuit appellate court for the District of Columbia will soon be getting a replacement for the seat recently vacated by rookie SCOTUS Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

President Donald Trump, on the holiday of Diwali, announced that he has nominated the Administrator for the White House's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Neomi Rao, for the open seat on the D.C. circuit bench. Rao may not have prior experience as a federal judge, but she did clerk for the Supreme Court under Justice Thomas, and on the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Who Is Neomi Rao?

Apart from her experience as a federal appellate and SCOTUS clerk and for an executive agency, Rao served as a law school professor at George Mason, and also as an associate counsel in the White House under the George W. Bush administration, as well as counsel to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. Not to mention, Rao also worked in private practice, but did so abroad in London.

When it comes to legal experience in administrative law, she's got plenty of that. And that will actually serve her well, assuming she is confirmed, as the D.C. Circuit court often hears appeals involving administrative agencies' actions and disputes.

Rao is a first generation Indian American, which may have explained why President Trump chose to announce his nomination during a Diwali celebration. He is quoted saying about Rao: "She will be fantastic. Great person."

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