Christina Clair Reiss (born September 3, 1962) is the chief United States district judge of the

United States District Court for the District of Vermont The United States District Court for the District of Vermont (in case citations, D. Vt.) is the United States district court, federal district court whose jurisdiction is the federal district of Vermont. The court has locations in Brattleboro, ...

. She is the first female judge to serve in the District of Vermont.

Early life and education

Born in

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, Reiss moved to Essex Center, Vermont in 1967, where she attended elementary and secondary schools. She earned a

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 ...

degree from

Saint Michael's College Saint Michael's College (St. Mikes) is a private Catholic college in Colchester, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1904 by the Society of Saint Edmund, it grants Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees in more than 40 majors to abou ...

Colchester, Vermont Colchester is a town in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of Colchester was 17,524. It is the third-most populous municipality and most populous town in the state of Vermont. Colchester borders B ...

in 1984 and a

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 Arizona College of Law University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, also known as the University of Arizona College of Law, is the law school at the University of Arizona located in Tucson, Arizona, United States and was the first law school founded in the St ...

in 1989.Unknown
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Career

From 1989 until 1990, Reiss clerked for the

Maine Supreme Judicial Court The Maine Supreme Judicial Court is the highest court in the state of Maine's judicial system. It is composed of seven justices, who are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Maine Senate. Between 1820 and 1839, justices served lifetime ...

, and from 1990 until 1992, Reiss practiced with the law firm of Perkins, Thompson, Hinckley & Keddy in

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

. From 1992 until 2001, Reiss practiced law with the firm of Sheehey, Brue, Gray & Furlong in

Burlington, Vermont Burlington, officially the City of Burlington, is the List of municipalities in Vermont, most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the county seat, seat of Chittenden County, Vermont, Chittenden County. It is located south of the Can ...

. From 2001 until 2004, Reiss was a partner with the law firm of Gravel and Shea in Burlington.

State judicial service

In August 2004, Reiss was appointed to the state bench as a district judge.

Federal judicial service

In July 2009, United States Senator

Patrick Leahy Patrick Joseph Leahy ( ; born March 31, 1940) is an American politician and attorney who represented Vermont in the United States Senate from 1975 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he also was the pr ...

announced that he had recommended that Reiss be nominated by President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

to the

, to fill the seat vacated by Judge

John Garvan Murtha John Garvan Murtha (born March 3, 1941) is an inactive Senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont. Education and career J. Garvan Murtha was born in Hartford, Connecticut on March 3, 1941. ...

, who assumed senior status. On October 9, 2009, Obama announced his intent to nominate Reiss to the district court seat.President Obama Announces His Intent to Nominate Christina Reiss to the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont
''whitehouse.gov'' (October 9, 2009). Her nomination was formally submitted to the United States Senate on October 13, 2009. 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 ...

confirmed Reiss by

unanimous consent In parliamentary procedure, unanimous consent, also known as general consent, or in the case of the parliaments under the Westminster system, leave of the house (or leave of the senate), is a situation in which no member present objects to a propo ...

on November 21, 2009. She received her judicial commission on December 21, 2009. She served an initial term as chief judge from 2010 to 2017 and began a second on July 21, 2024.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Reiss, Christina 1962 births James E. Rogers College of Law alumni Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont Living people Saint Michael's College alumni United States district court judges appointed by Barack Obama Vermont state court judges 21st-century American women judges