Arthur Marvin Quattlebaum Jr. (born August 2, 1964) is a

United States circuit judge In the United States, a federal judge is a judge who serves on a court established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. Often called "Article III judges", federal judges include the chief justice and associate justices of the U.S. Su ...

of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (in case citations, 4th Cir.) is a United States federal court, federal court located in Richmond, Virginia, with appellate jurisdiction over the United States district court, district cou ...

. He was formerly a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...

of the

United States District Court for the District of South Carolina The United States District Court for the District of South Carolina (in case citations, D.S.C.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of South Carolina. Court is held in the cities of Aiken, Anderson, Beaufort, Charle ...

Biography

Quattlebaum was born on August 2, 1964, in

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

. He received his

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

, ''cum laude'', from

Rhodes College Rhodes College is a private liberal arts college in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Historically affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA), it is a member of the Associated Colleges of the South and is accredited by the Southern Associa ...

and his

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from the

University of South Carolina School of Law The University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law, also known as South Carolina Law School, is a professional school within the University of South Carolina. Founded in 1867, it is the only public and non-profit law school in South Car ...

, where he was a member of the ''South Carolina Law Review''. He started his legal career as an associate at

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP (commonly referred to simply as Nelson Mullins) is a U.S. law firm and lobby group based in Columbia, South Carolina. Nelson Mullins has over 1000 attorneys, policy advisors, and professionals across 33 off ...

, where he was a partner before becoming a judge. His nationwide trial practice focused on complex civil litigation in federal courts. On the basis of this experience, he was invited to serve as a fellow in the

American College of Trial Lawyers The American College of Trial Lawyers (ACTL) is a professional association of trial lawyers from the United States and Canada. Founded in 1950, the College is dedicated to maintaining and improving the standards of trial practice, especially tri ...

. From 2011 to 2012, he served as the president of the

South Carolina Bar The South Carolina Bar (SC Bar) is the integrated (mandatory) bar association of the U.S. state of South Carolina. Organization The South Carolina Bar began in 1884 as the South Carolina Bar Association, a professional organization of approximat ...

. And, in 2021, he is serving as the Chair of Greenville's YMCA Board.

Federal judicial service

District court service

On August 3, 2017, President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

nominated Quattlebaum to serve as a United States district judge of the

, to the seat vacated by Judge Cameron McGowan Currie, who assumed senior status on October 3, 2013. On October 4, 2017, a hearing on his nomination was held before the

Senate Judiciary Committee The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally known as the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a Standing committee (United States Congress), standing committee of 22 U.S. senators whose role is to oversee the United States Departm ...

. On October 26, 2017, his nomination was reported out of committee by a

voice vote In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "by live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by respondin ...

. On February 28, 2018, the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

invoked

cloture Cloture (, ), closure or, informally, a guillotine, is a motion or process in parliamentary procedure aimed at bringing debate to a quick end. The cloture procedure originated in the French National Assembly, from which the name is taken. is ...

on his nomination by a 69–29 vote. On March 1, 2018, his nomination was confirmed by a 69–28 vote. The senators who voted against confirming Quattlebaum did so not because they found him unqualified, but as a protest vote over the fact that in 2013 and 2016, the Senate had not advanced two black nominees for the same South Carolina judgeship. Quattlebaum received his judicial commission on March 6, 2018. His service on the district court terminated on September 6, 2018, upon elevation to the court of appeals.

Court of appeals service

On April 26, 2018, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Quattlebaum to serve as a United States circuit judge of the

. On May 7, 2018, his nomination was sent to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. He was nominated to the seat being vacated by Judge William Byrd Traxler Jr., who announced his intention to assume senior status on August 31, 2018. On June 20, 2018, a hearing on his nomination was held before the

. On July 19, 2018, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 15–6 vote. On August 15, 2018, the Senate invoked cloture on Quattlebaum's nomination by a 61–28 vote. On August 16, 2018, his nomination was confirmed by a 62–28 vote. He received his judicial commission on September 4, 2018.

Notable opinions

* ''Peltier v. Charter Day School Inc.'', --- F.4th ----, 2021 WL 3483288 (Aug. 9, 2021)''.'' In a challenge to a charter school's dress code, the court reversed the district court on two grounds. First, the court held that the charter school was not a state actor and thus not subject to an equal protection claim. But, second, the court found that claims of sex discrimination related to a dress code are not categorically excluded from the scope of Title IX. So the case was sent back to the district court for further proceedings on the Title IX claim. * ''Eline v. Town of Ocean City'', Maryland, 7 F.4th 214 (4th Cir. 2021). Rejecting a § 1983 action challenging a city ordinance prohibiting women from baring their breasts in public, the court found the ordinance did not violate the plaintiff's equal protection rights.

References

External links

* * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Quattlebaum, A. Marvin Jr. 1964 births Living people 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers Judges of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit People from Durham, North Carolina Rhodes College alumni South Carolina lawyers United States district court judges appointed by Donald Trump United States court of appeals judges appointed by Donald Trump University of South Carolina School of Law alumni