Month: October 2024

Sharad Desai – Nominee to the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona

The brother of Ninth Circuit Judge Roopali Desai, Phoenix based attorney Sharad Desai is vying to become the first Indian American judge on the federal district court bench in Arizona.

Background

Born to an Indian immigrant family in Phoenix, Desai received a joint B.S. and B.A. from the University of Arizona in 2003 and then a J.D. from New York University School of Law in 2006. Desai then returned to Arizona to clerk for Arizona Supreme Court Justice Rebecca White Berch.

After his clerkship, Desai joined Osborn Maledon, P.A. in Phoenix. He became a Member with the firm in 2012. In 2015, he shifted to Honeywell International Inc., a business conglomerate working in aerospace and technology, among other areas, where he serves as Vice President and General Counsel.

History of the Seat

Desai has been nominated to the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona, to a seat to be vacated on October 21, 2024, when Judge G. Murray Snow takes senior status.

Legal Experience

After his clerkship, Desai worked in litigation at Osborn Maledon, P.A. While at the firm, Desai represented a class of retired Arizona judges in a class action suit against a change in the calculations of pension benefit increases for judges. See Fields v. Elected Officials’ Retirement Plan, 320 P.3d 1160 (Ariz. 2014). Desai secured a victory for the class in trial court, which was affirmed by the Arizona Supreme Court. See id.

While at the firm, Desai was appointed by the Arizona District Court to represent a class of pretrial detainees in litigation by the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office seeking to terminate consent agreements overseeing conditions in their jails. See Graves v. Arpaio, 48 F. Supp. 3d 1318 (D. Ariz. 2014). Desai maintained his representation of the class until he left the firm in 2015.

On the pro bono side, Desai represented a Nevada prisoner seeking recovery for costs from litigation challenging a disciplinary hearing against him. As part of his representation, Desai briefed and argued the appeal before the Ninth Circuit. See Jones v. McDaniel, 607 F. App’x 710 (9th Cir. 2015).

For the last nine years at Honeywell International Inc., Desai has served as a Counsel, advising various divisions of the company, and overseeing litigation in general. However, he has not appeared in court during this time. Nonetheless, Desai has supervised litigation, including in a $38 million product liability suit involving a Honeywell autopilot on an aircraft, which ended in a jury verdict in Honeywell’s favor after a two week trial. See Egbers v. Honeywell, Int’l, Cook County Circuit Ct. Case No. 06 L 6992 (Ill. 2016).

Overall Assessment

Perhaps more than any other Senator, Senator Kirsten Synema has been able to grease the wheels for nominees from her state. The three nominees to Arizona courts from the Biden Administration have each drawn more than 60 senators in support, a remarkable feat, given that only around 20% of the Administration’s judicial nominees have drawn that level of support.

While Desai is unlikely to get the same level of support, given the fact that his nomination will almost certainly be considered in the lame duck session, it is possible that Sinema will be able to work her magic a fourth time and ensure that Desai joins the bench in due course.

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Sarah Davenport – Nominee to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico

Las Cruces based federal prosecutor Sarah Davenport is hoping to make it onto the federal bench before the end of 2024.

Background

Born in Hobbs in Southern New Mexico, Davenport received his B.A. from New Mexico State University in 1998 and a J.D. from the University of New Mexico School of Law in 2006. Since then, Davenport has worked for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico, starting as a law clerk, and then working as an AUSA, and currently as a Supervisory AUSA.

History of the Seat

Davenport has been nominated for a future vacancy on the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico. This seat will open when Judge William Johnson, who will take senior status upon the confirmation of a successor.

Legal Career

Davenport has spent her entire legal career at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico, specifically working in the Las Cruces office in Southern New Mexico, where she worked on criminal prosecutions. During her tenure, Davenport tried four jury trials to verdict, including the prosecution of Jessie Marquez for participation in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. See United States v. Marquez, 898 F.3d 1036 (10th Cir. 2018). After being convicted at trial, Marquez appealed, and Davenport briefed and argued the appeal before the Tenth Circuit, which ended in an affirmance. See id.

Among other matters, Davenport represented the U.S. Attorney’s Office in defending against challenges to pre-trial detention. See, e.g., United States v. Perez, 785 F. Supp. 2d 1177 (D.N.M. 2011) (Browning, J.) (denying motion for release).

Overall Assessment

Given her background as a federal prosecutor, Davenport appears to have the background in the criminal litigation that makes up a significant portion of a federal judge’s docket. Her ultimate chances of confirmation will turn largely on whether Democrats are able to appropriately prioritize it before the end of the Congress.

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Elizabeth Coombe – Nominee to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York

The scion of a politically active (and Republican leaning) family in Northern New York, Elizabeth Coombe is looking to beat the clock in the Biden Presidency and join the federal bench.

Background

Born in 1967 in Ridgewood, New Jersey, the daughter of Richard Coombe, who would go on to serve a decade in the New York Assembly, and as Chairman of the Sullivan County Republican Party. Coombe received an A.B. from Hamilton College in 1989 and a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1992. Coombe then clerked for Judge Diana Murphy on the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota.

After her clerkship, Coombe served as Staff Attorney for the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission and then in the Civil Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. In 1998, Coombe joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. In 2003, she shifted to the Albany Office of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York. Since 2018, Coombe has served as First Assistant U.S. Attorney.

History of the Seat

Coombe has been nominated to a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York. This seat was vacated on September 1, 2024, when Judge Glenn Suddaby took senior status.

Legal Experience

Coombe started her legal career at the Securities and Exchange Commission, where she worked on an investigation of the National Association of Securities Dealers Inc. She then shifted to the Civil Division at the Department of Justice, where, among other matters, Coombe worked on employee retirement suits brought before the Merit Systems Protection Board and the Federal Circuit. See Dilworth v. Office of Personnel Management, 132 F.3d 713 (Fed. Cir. 1997).

Between 1998 and 2003, Coombe worked as a criminal AUSA in the District of Columbia. In this role, Coombe also argued appeals before the D.C. Court of Appeals (not to be confused with the D.C. Circuit). See, e.g., Mercer v. United States, 724 A.2d 1176 (D.C. 1999). Coombe also defended against 2255 motions, or motions to amend, vacate, or set aside sentences in federal court. See, e.g., Culter v. United States, 241 F. Supp. 2d 19 (D.D.C. 2003). In a notable case, she defended convictions against Rico McLaughlin for the shooting of a government informant. See United States v. McLaughlin, 164 F.3d 1 (D.C. Cir. 1998).

Since 2003, Coombe has worked as a federal prosecutor in the Northern District of New York. Notably, while with the office, Coombe prosecuted New York Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno for corruption charges. See United States v. Bruno, 661 F.3d 733 (2d Cir. 2011). Bruno was initially convicted but the convictions were vacated after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Skilling limited the reach of the honest services fraud statute. Bruno was acquitted in a retrial.

Coombe also prosecuted Giridhar Sekhar for seeking to blackmail the New York State Comptroller into approving an investment into his company. See United States v. Sekhar, 683 F.3d 436 (2d Cir. 2012). After Sekhar was convicted at trial and the Second Circuit affirmed, the Supreme Court reversed, finding that one could not extort someone for a recommendation as it was not a piece of property under the Hobbes Act. See Sekhar v. United States, 570 U.S. 529 (2013).

Political Activity

Despite coming from a politically active family, Coombe’s own political activity is fairly limited. Other than volunteering on her father’s campaigns, Coombe’s sole contribution was to Rep. John Katko (R-NY) in 2014.

Overall Assessment

While Coombe was nominated relatively late in the Senate calendar, her hearing was relatively calm compared to her fellow nominee to the Northern District. Given Coombe’s Republican ties, it’s possible that she may be seen as a consensus candidate to reach the bench, compared to other nominees pending.

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