The Eastern District of California is known for being one of the most heavily overworked courts in the country.  The Court has not been expanded in decades, even as caseloads explode, and has relied heavily on senior judges to carry the burden.  As such, the nomination of Dirk Paloutzian, a business attorney from Fresno, is likely to be welcome news for the judges on the court.

Background

Dirk Paloutzian was born in Fresno County, California on April 6, 1969.  Paloutzian attended the University of California at Berkeley, getting a B.A. in 1991.^[1]  He then received a J.D. from the University of California Davis King Hall School of Law in 1994.^[2]

Paloutzian served as an extern for Justice Marvin Baxter on the California Supreme Court and then became a Deputy District Attorney for the County of Fresno.^[3]  In2 002, Paloutzian joined Baker Manock & Jensen in Fresno, where he currently serves as a Partner.

History of the Seat

Paloutzian has been nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, to a seat vacated on December 17, 2019 by Judge Morrison England.  Paloutzian’s nomination was announced on April 29, 2020, although he was not officially nominated until May 21, 2020.

Legal Experience

Paloutzian started his legal career at the firm of McCormick Barstow LLP, before spending five years as a prosecutor with the County of Fresno.  As a prosecutor, Paloutzian worked on a variety of criminal matters, including sexual assault, homicide and gang prosecutions.^[4]  In 2000, Paloutzian became the county’s first elder abuse prosecutor, where he focused solely on prosecuting elder abuse cases.^[5] 

Since 2002, Paloutzian has been handling business and commercial litigation at Baker Manock & Jensen in Fresno.  Among the more notable cases he has handled with the firm, Paloutzian represented dairy farms in Hawaii being sued for violations of federal water pollution laws.^[6]  Paloutzian also represented psychiatrist Dwight Sievert, who was sued for damages after releasing Edward Coburn from psychiatric detention (Coburn went on to have a violent outburst directed at his father on an airplane).^[7]  After a trial court judge found that Sievert was immune from damages in the suit, a panel of the court of appeals affirmed.^[8]

Overall Assessment

With a Republican controlled Senate, Paloutzian’s biggest obstacle to confirmation (other than the election clock) is the return of blue slips by California’s Democratic senators.  As Paloutzian is a relatively uncontroversial nominee, it is likely that he will not be opposed by the senators.  Whether the Senate chooses to take up the nomination in the short calendar left is another story.

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