The District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission (“Commission”) has forwarded to President Barack Obama the names of three lawyers for his consideration in selecting a nominee to fill a judicial vacancy on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The President has sixty (60) days to select a nominee to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Linda Kay Davis. The Commission recommends the following candidates to fill this vacancy:
Noel Thomas Johnson is a Magistrate Judge on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Since his appointment in 2002, Judge Johnson has served in the Family Court. From 1987 to 2002, Judge Johnson worked for the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, first as a trial attorney, later as Section Chief of the Child Support Section, and then as Senior Counsel for Child Support. Judge Johnson received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Politics from The Catholic University of America and earned his law degree from Tulane University School of Law. Following law school, Judge Johnson served as a law clerk at the Office of Bar Counsel, District of Columbia Court of Appeals. Judge Johnson also worked as a contract legal assistant for the District of Columbia law firm Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver, and Jacobson. Prior to his legal career, Judge Johnson was a studio cameraman for a local television station.
Michael Kenny O’Keefe is a sole practitioner in the District of Columbia specializing in criminal defense and family law issues. He has represented individuals in over 2,000 cases in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, and litigated over 200 trials. In 2010, Mr. O’Keefe served as an adjunct professor of law at the University of Baltimore School of Law. Prior to starting his private practice, Mr. O’Keefe was a consultant to the District of Columbia law firm O’Connor & Hannan. Mr. O’Keefe received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Notre Dame and earned his law degree from American University’s Washington College of Law, where he was an Associate Editor of the Law Review. Following law school, Mr. O’Keefe served as a law clerk at O’Connor & Hannan. He also served as a Legislative Aide to United States Senator Christopher J. Dodd.
Robert D. Okun has been a prosecutor in the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia for approximately 16 years. For most of the past 12 years, Mr. Okun has served as the Chief of the Special Proceedings Division, which responds to all post-conviction motions. Mr. Okun also has served as Special Counsel to the United States Attorney for Professional Development and Legal Policy, where he oversaw the United States Attorney’s Office’s professional development program and represented that office on numerous court and criminal justice committees. In addition, he serves as one of the United States Attorney’s Office’s professional responsibility officers, advising and training Assistant United States Attorneys on issues involving the Rules of Professional Conduct. Prior to joining the United States Attorney’s Office, Mr. Okun served as a trial attorney at the Department of Justice, working in both the Office of Consumer Litigation and the Fraud Section of the Civil Division. He also served in the Office of Policy and Evaluation at the Federal Trade Commission. For the past ten years Mr. Okun has taught classes on civic responsibility to fifth-grade students at public schools in the District of Columbia. Mr. Okun has a Bachelor of Arts degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania and earned his law degree, cum laude, from Harvard Law School. Following law school, Mr. Okun served as a law clerk for the Honorable Frank E. Schwelb, then an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
Questions concerning the District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission should be directed to the Executive Director at (202) 879-0478 or via email at [email protected].
