Judge Lydia Griggsby, nominated to be a federal trial judge in Maryland, should have a short learning curve for her new role, given that she has served as a trial judge on the specialized Court of Federal Claims for the last seven years.

Background

A native Marylander, Lydia Kay Griggsby was born on January 16, 1968 in Baltimore.  Griggsby received a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1990, and then obtained a J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center in 1993.^[1]

After graduation, Griggsby worked for the Baltimore office of DLA Piper for two years before joining the U.S. Department of Justice as a trial attorney. ^[2]  In 1998, Griggsby became a federal prosecutor with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

In 2004, Griggsby left to become Counsel for the Senate Committee on Ethics.  In 2006, she became Counsel to Sen. Patrick Leahy at the Senate Judiciary Committee, working on privacy and technology issues.^[3]

In 2014, Griggsby was nominated by President Obama to be a Judge on the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, replacing Judge Francis Allegra.  Griggsby was confirmed by voice vote on December 5, 2014, and has served in that position ever since.

History of the Seat

Griggsby has been nominated for a seat on the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.  While the exact seat has not been specified, Griggsby will likely fill the seat opened by Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander’s move to senior status upon the confirmation of her successor.

Legal Career

Griggsby has held a number of positions throughout her career, including work in private practice, for the federal government, and as a staffer for the U.S. Senate.  Interestingly, by her own description, most of these roles did not involve Griggsby working on litigation, and Griggsby did not actively try any cases except on the pleadings.^[4]

Nonetheless, Griggsby has worked on a number of complex cases.  For example, Griggsby worked as part of the federal government in negotiating a consent decree requiring better environmental protections in vehicles produced by Toyota. ^[5]  She also defended the Bureau of Prisons against a constitutional lawsuit challenging regulations governing the inmates’ use of mail.^[6] 

Political Activity

Griggsby has a fairly short political history, consisting primarily of two stints conducting voter protection for the Obama campaigns in 2008 and 2012.^[7]

Jurisprudence 

Griggsby has served as a U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge since her appointment in 2014.  In this role, she adjudicates suits involving monetary claims against the federal government as well as specialized cases, including vaccine injury suits.  Among her notable rulings on the Court of Federal Claims, Griggsby ruled, in a decision upheld by the Federal Circuit, that a protester to the award of a government contract did not have standing to file a challenge if the protester was unable to perform the contract.^[8]  

Overall Assessment

Seven years ago, Griggsby was confirmed unanimously for a seat on the Court of Federal Claims.  Given the lack of controversy in her background, there is little reason to think that her confirmation to the District of Maryland will be too different.

[1]See Sen. Comm. on the Judiciary, 113rd Cong., Lydia Griggsby: Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees 1.

[2]Id. at 2.

[3] See id.

[4] Id. at 14-15.

[5]See United States v. Toyota Motor Corp., No. 99-018888 (D.D.C. July 1, 2003).

[6] McCain v. Reno, 98 F. Supp. 2d 5 (D.D.C. 2000).

[7] See Griggsby, supra n. 1 at 11.

[8] See Stuart Turner and Nathaniel Castellano, Fed. Circ. Ruling Highlights Bid Protester Standing Issues, Mondaq, Sept. 28, 2018.