David James Porter (born March 8, 1966) 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 Third Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (in case citations, 3d Cir.) is a United States federal court, federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the United States district court, district courts for the following United Sta ...

Early life and education

Porter was born on March 8, 1966, in

Kittanning, Pennsylvania Kittanning ( ) is a borough in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is situated northeast of Pittsburgh, along the east bank of the Allegheny River. The population was 3,921 at the 2020 census. The name is ...

. After being educated at

Millersville University of Pennsylvania Millersville University of Pennsylvania (commonly known as Millersville University, The Ville, or MU) is a public university in Millersville, Pennsylvania. It is one of the ten schools that comprise the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Educa ...

, he earned 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 ...

from

Grove City College Grove City College (GCC) is a private, conservative Christian liberal arts college in Grove City, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1876 as a normal school, the college emphasizes a humanities core curriculum and offers 60 majors and si ...

in 1988 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

George Mason University George Mason University (GMU) is a Public university, public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Located in Northern Virginia near Washington, D.C., the university is named in honor of George Mason, a Founding Father ...

School of Law (now

Antonin Scalia Law School The Antonin Scalia Law School is the law school of George Mason University, Virginia's largest public research university. It is located in Arlington, Virginia, roughly west of Washington, D.C., and east-northeast of George Mason University's ...

) in 1992, where he served as an articles editor of the ''

George Mason Law Review The ''George Mason Law Review'' is an independent law review run by students at the Antonin Scalia Law School of George Mason University. Founded in 1976, and partially re-founded after reorganization in 1995, it is the flagship law review of the A ...

''.

Legal career

After graduating from law school, Porter served as a

law clerk A law clerk, judicial clerk, or judicial assistant is a person, often a lawyer, who provides direct counsel and assistance to a lawyer or judge by Legal research, researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court. Judicial ...

to Judge

D. Brooks Smith David Brookman "Brooks" Smith (born December 4, 1951) is a senior judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He was previously Chief Judge of both the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and the United St ...

of the

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania The United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania (in case citations, W.D. Pa.) is a United States district court, federal trial court that sits in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Erie, Pennsylvania, Erie, and John ...

from 1992 to 1994. He then joined the law firm Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

, where practiced in the fields of

regulatory law Regulatory law refers to secondary legislation, including regulations, promulgated by an executive branch agency under a delegation from a legislature; as well as legal issues related to regulatory compliance. It contrasts with statutory law promul ...

constitutional law Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as the basic rights of citizens and, in ...

, and

commercial litigation Commercial law (or business law), which is also known by other names such as mercantile law or trade law depending on jurisdiction; is the body of law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmenta ...

. From 1989 to 1992 he was a member of the

Federalist Society The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies (FedSoc) is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative and Libertarianism in the United States, libertarian legal organization that advocates for a Textualism, textualist an ...

; he rejoined in 1995 and has since been President of the Pittsburgh chapter. In 2014 David J. Porter's name was discussed to be included to the White House as part of a package of judicial nominees between senators

Bob Casey Robert or Bob Casey may refer to: American politicians * Robert E. Casey (1909–1982), Pennsylvania Treasurer, 1977–1981 * Robert R. Casey (1915–1986), House of Representatives member from Texas *Robert F. Casey (1921–2006), Illinois House o ...

(D) and

Pat Toomey Patrick Joseph Toomey Jr. (born November 17, 1961) is an American businessman and politician who served as a United States senator from Pennsylvania from 2011 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he served three terms as the U.S. represen ...

(R). This was due to a tradition in Pennsylvania that divides judicial nominations on a 3-to-1 ratio when the state's two U.S. senators are of the opposite party. This would allow the White House appointing one judge of the opposing party for three of their own party. Progressives in Pennsylvania scrambled to derail the deal because of David Porter's opposition to abortion, gay marriage and gun control. As a result, his name was removed as part of a deal that would have resulted in him being nominated to the

Federal judicial service

On April 10, 2018, 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 ...

announced his intent to nominate Porter to serve as a United States Circuit Judge of the

. Senator

Bob Casey Jr. Robert Patrick Casey Jr. (born April 13, 1960) is an American lawyer and politician who served from 2007 to 2025 as a United States senator from Pennsylvania. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Casey is ...

immediately indicated his opposition to Porter's nomination, while Senator

voiced his support. On April 12, 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 vacated by Judge

D. Michael Fisher Dennis Michael Fisher (born November 7, 1944) is a Senior status, senior United States federal judge, United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He also serves as the Distinguished Jurist in Residence ...

, who assumed senior status on February 1, 2017. On June 6, 2018, 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 July 19, 2018, his nomination was reported out of committee by an 11–10 vote. On October 11, 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 ...

confirmed his nomination by a 50–45 vote. He received his judicial commission on October 15, 2018.

Notable rulings

In May 2020, Porter wrote for the unanimous panel when it found that the

University of the Sciences University of the Sciences in Philadelphia (University of the Sciences or USciences), previously Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science (PCPS), was a private university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. On June 1, 2022, it officially merge ...

breached its contractual promise of a fair process when it expelled a student accused of

campus sexual assault Campus sexual assault is the sexual assault, including rape, of a student while attending an institution of higher learning, such as a college or university. The victims of such assaults are more likely to be female, but any gender can be victim ...

without providing a live hearing or an opportunity to cross examine witnesses.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, David J. 1966 births Living people 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers Antonin Scalia Law School alumni Grove City College alumni Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit Lawyers from Pittsburgh Pennsylvania lawyers Pennsylvania Republicans People associated with Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney People from Kittanning, Pennsylvania United States court of appeals judges appointed by Donald Trump