Know a Nominee: Tiffany Cunningham to the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals

UPDATE 7/19/21

• The Senate confirmed Tiffany Cunningham to the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals on a bipartisan vote of 63-33. She will take her seat on the bench in the near future once she receives her judicial commission.

UPDATE 7/15/21

• The Senate on Thursday cast a bipartisan vote of 63-34 to limit debate on Cunningham’s nomination to the Federal Circuit, setting up a confirmation vote Monday evening.

The Senate is expected to consider the nomination of Tiffany Cunningham to the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals in the near future. Here’s what you need to know about the nominee:

Who is Tiffany Cunningham?

• Cunningham, 45, is an intellectual property attorney with the law firm Perkins Coie who specializes in complex patent and trade secret disputes and is also a registered patent attorney with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
• She earned her undergraduate degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and her law degree from Harvard Law School. After law school, she served as a law clerk for Judge Timothy Dyk on the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals from 2001 to 2002.
• After her clerkship, Cunningham worked for Kirkland & Ellis from 2002 to 2014 and became a partner at the firm in 2007. She 
• If confirmed, Cunningham would be the first African American judge to serve on the Federal Circuit.

What’s the outlook for her confirmation?

• The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced Cunningham’s nomination on a bipartisan vote of 16-6. Ranking Member Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), John Cornyn (R-TX), and Mike Lee (R-UT) joined Democrats in supporting her nomination.
• The GOP senators who were opposed to her nomination cited the lack of experience as a sitting judge and her past political donations to Democrats including Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.
• The American Bar Association’s judicial nomination rating panel gave Cunningham a unanimous rating of “well qualified.”

What does it mean for the Federal Circuit?

• Cunningham’s confirmation would fill a position on the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals that became vacant on May 31, 2021, when Judge Evan Wallach (who was appointed by Barack Obama) took senior status.
• The Federal Circuit was created in 1982 by Congress through a merger between the U.S. customs and patent appeals court and the U.S. claims court. It is located in Washington, D.C., and is unique because it’s the only appellate court with nationwide jurisdiction over subject matter, rather than a geographic jurisdiction. Its focus includes international trade, government contracts, patents, trademarks, monetary claims against the U.S. government, federal personnel, veterans’ benefits, and public safety officers’ benefit claims. 
• The Federal Circuit has 12 active judgeships. Of the 11 judges currently on the bench, one was appointed by Ronald Reagan, one by George H.W. Bush, one by Bill Clinton, two by George W. Bush, and six by Barack Obama.

— Eric Revell

(Photo Credit: iStock / imaginima)