Patty Shwartz
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Patty Shwartz (born July 24, 1961) is a United States circuit judge 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

Shwartz was born in Paterson,
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
. She grew up in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, where she attended
Hebrew school Hebrew school is Jewish education focusing on topics of Jewish history, learning the Hebrew language, and finally learning one's Torah Portion, in preparation for the ceremony in Judaism of entering adulthood, known as a Bar or Bat Mitzvah. Heb ...
and became
bat mitzvah A ''bar mitzvah'' () or ''bat mitzvah'' () is a coming of age ritual in Judaism. According to Jewish law, before children reach a certain age, the parents are responsible for their child's actions. Once Jewish children reach that age, they a ...
at Congregation Beth Shalom. She graduated from Pompton Lakes High School.Leichman, Abigail Klein
"Blocked judge has roots in Jewish community; Obama nominee impressed her peers at Hebrew school"
'' New Jersey Jewish News'', January 11, 2012. Accessed April 10, 2013. "Shwartz graduated from Pompton Lakes High School, received her BA from Rutgers University, and was named Outstanding Woman Law Graduate of her class at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she was editor of the Law Review."
Shwartz earned her
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
Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...
in 1983, with highest honors, and her
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
University of Pennsylvania Law School The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School (also known as Penn Carey Law, or Penn Law; previously University of Pennsylvania Law School) is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in Phi ...
in 1986, where she was a member of the ''University of Pennsylvania Law Review''.


Legal career

After graduating from law school, she worked as an associate at Pepper, Hamilton & Scheetz. Shwartz clerked for Judge Harold A. Ackerman of the
United States District Court for the District of New Jersey The United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (in case citations, D.N.J.) is a federal court in the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, Third Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. gover ...
from 1987 to 1989. She then worked for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey from 1989 until 2003. During this time she held the following positions: Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division (1995 to 1999), Chief of the Criminal Division (1999 to 2001 and 2002 to 2003) and Executive
Assistant United States Attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gov ...
(2001 to 2002). Since 2009, Shwartz had taught as an adjunct professor of law at
Fordham University School of Law Fordham University School of Law is the law school of Fordham University. The school is located in Manhattan in New York City, and is one of eight ABA-approved law schools in that city. According to Fordham University School of Law's ABA- ...
and
Rutgers Law School Rutgers Law School is the law school of Rutgers University, with classrooms in Newark and Camden, New Jersey. It is the largest public law school and the 10th largest law school, overall, in the United States. Each class in the three-year J.D. pr ...
.


Federal judicial service


United States magistrate judge tenure

From 2003 to 2013, Shwartz served as a
United States magistrate judge In United States federal courts, magistrate judges are judges appointed to assist U.S. district court judges in the performance of their duties. Magistrate judges generally oversee first appearances of criminal defendants, set bail, and conduct ...
of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.


Notable ruling

In 2011, as a magistrate judge, Shwartz sentenced
rapper Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...
Jeffrey Atkins (
Ja Rule Jeffrey Bruce Atkins (born February 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule (), is an American rapper, singer, and actor. Born and raised in New York City, Ja Rule became known for blending gangsta rap with pop rap, pop and contempo ...
) to 28 months in federal prison after he pleaded guilty to failing to file
tax returns A tax return is a form on which a person or organization presents an account of income and circumstances, used by the tax authorities to determine liability for tax. Tax returns are usually processed by each country's tax authority, known as a ...
with the
IRS The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting Taxation in the United States, U.S. federal taxes and administerin ...
for five tax years, resulted in $1.1 million in tax losses. Ja Rule was also ordered to pay taxes and penalties owed.


U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

Shwartz was recommended for a judgeship on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit by Senator
Frank Lautenberg Frank Raleigh Lautenberg (; January 23, 1924 June 3, 2013) was an American businessman and Democratic Party politician who served as United States Senator from New Jersey from 1982 to 2001, and again from 2003 until his death in 2013. He was ori ...
. On October 5, 2011 she was 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 a judgeship on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. The
American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary association, voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students in the United States; national in scope, it is not specific to any single jurisdiction. Founded in 1878, the ABA's stated acti ...
's
Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students in the United States; national in scope, it is not specific to any single jurisdiction. Founded in 1878, the ABA's stated activities are the setting ...
unanimously rated Shwartz "well qualified" for the post, the committee's highest rating. In January 2012, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' reported that New Jersey Senator
Bob Menendez Robert Menendez (; born January 1, 1954) is an American former politician and lawyer who represented New Jersey in the United States Senate from 2006 until his resignation in 2024. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic ...
had not returned his
blue slip A blue slip or blue-slipping is one of two different legislative procedures in the United States Congress. * Blue slip (U.S. Senate) is the slip on which the senators from the state of residence of a federal judicial nominee gives an opinion on the ...
for Shwartz's nomination—effectively blocking her nomination, since nominees typically do not go forward without home-state senator support, signified by the return of a blue slip. Menendez gave no public reason why he was blocking the nomination, although ''The Times'' noted that Shwartz "has been in a relationship for more than two decades" with the head of the public corruption unit for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey, which investigated Menendez in 2006 in an inquiry that Menendez has "long contended was politically motivated." Some lawyers and judges in New Jersey speculated that Menendez was "acting out of resentment, rather than any concern about Judge Shwartz's qualifications." Menendez became the first Senate Democrat to block one of President Obama's judicial nominees. The next day, Menendez said that "substantive" rather than personal or "political" concerns about Shwartz's nomination, questioning her "breadth of knowledge of constitutional law." Menendez's opposition effectively derailed her nomination at the time. On January 13, 2012, after meeting again with Shwartz and having what he characterized as an "in-depth discussion," Menendez announced that he would support Shwartz's nomination and return his blue slip, paving the way for 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 ...
to hold a hearing on Shwartz. ''The Times'' reported that in response to Menendez's obstruction, the White House had been declining to nominate U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael A. Shipp, Menendez’s choice, to a vacancy on the District Court for the District of New Jersey. On February 15, 2012, Shwartz received a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. On March 8, 2012, the Judiciary Committee reported her nomination to the floor of the Senate by a 10–6 vote. On January 2, 2013, Shwartz's nomination was returned to the President, due to the sine die adjournment of the Senate. On January 3, 2013, at the beginning of the new Congress, Obama renominated Shwartz to the judgeship.PN5 — Patty Shwartz — The Judiciary: 113th Congress (2013-2014)
Congress.gov Congress.gov is the online database of United States Congress legislative information. Congress.gov is a joint project of the Library of Congress, the House, the Senate and the Government Publishing Office. Congress.gov was in beta in 2012, and ...
.
Her nomination was reported to the floor by the Senate Judiciary Committee on February 14, 2013. The Senate confirmed Shwartz on April 9, 2013, by a 64–34 vote. She received her commission the following day.


Tenure and noteworthy decisions

*In 2018, the Third Circuit upheld, in a 2–1 decision, a New Jersey state law limiting most gun magazines to a maximum capacity of 10 rounds of ammunition. The decision, written by Shwartz, rejected a request by
National Rifle Association of America The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...
affiliates for a temporary injunction to block the limit from coming into effect. In her decision, Shwartz noted "the significant increase in the frequency and lethality" of
mass shootings A mass shooting is a violent crime in which one or more attackers use a firearm to Gun violence, kill or injure multiple individuals in rapid succession. There is no widely accepted specific definition, and different organizations tracking su ...
and
active shooter An active shooter is the perpetrator of an ongoing mass shooting. The term is primarily used to characterize shooters who are targeting victims indiscriminately and at a large scale, who oftentimes, will either commit suicide or intend to be kil ...
incidents in the United States, and wrote that the law did not contravene the Second Amendment, noting that the law "imposes no limit on the number of firearms or magazines or amount of ammunition a person may lawfully possess." Judge
Stephanos Bibas Stephanos Bibas (born June 18, 1969) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as a United States circuit judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He was appointed to the bench in 2017 by President Donald Trump. Before his appoi ...
dissented. *In 2019, the Third Circuit, in a unanimous panel decision by Shwartz, upheld a district court's issuance of a nationwide preliminary injunction that blocked the
Trump administration Presidency of Donald Trump may refer to: * First presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration from 2017 to 2021 * Second presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration since 2025 See also * ...
from implementing regulations that would allow additional employers to deny health insurance coverage for contraceptives. Shwartz's decision held that the
Affordable Care Act The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and informally as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Presid ...
's contraception mandate did not give federal agencies the power to establish such an exemption.Adam Liptak
Supreme Court Upholds Trump Administration Regulation Letting Employers Opt Out of Birth Control Coverage
''New York Times'' (July 8, 2020).
In a subsequent decision in 2020, the Supreme Court reversed, upholding the Trump administration regulation. *In 2019, in a decision written by Shwartz, the Third Circuit upheld the district court's ruling that the
Pennsylvania Department of Corrections The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (PADOC) is the Pennsylvania state agency that is responsible for the confinement, care, and rehabilitation of approximately 37,000 inmates at state correctional facilities funded by the Commonwealth of ...
were not immune from a suit brought by inmate
Mumia Abu-Jamal Mumia Abu-Jamal (born Wesley Cook; April 24, 1954) is an American political activist and journalist who was convicted of murder and sentenced to death in 1982 for the 1981 murder of Philadelphia Police Department, Philadelphia police officer C ...
challenging, on
cruel and unusual punishment Cruel and unusual punishment is a phrase in common law describing punishment that is considered unacceptable due to the suffering, pain, or humiliation it inflicts on the person subjected to the sanction. The precise definition varies by jurisdi ...
grounds, the department's refusal to provide him with two anti-hepatitis drugs used to treat
Hepatitis C Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection period, people often have mild or no symptoms. Early symptoms can include ...
. The Third Circuit remanded the case to the district court for further proceedings. *In 2019, in a decision written by Shwartz, the Third Circuit held that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's collection of tolls on the
Pennsylvania Turnpike The Pennsylvania Turnpike, sometimes shortened to Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike, is a controlled-access toll road which is operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in Pennsylvania. It runs for across the southern part of the st ...
does not violate the
Commerce Clause The Commerce Clause describes an enumerated power listed in the United States Constitution ( Article I, Section 8, Clause 3). The clause states that the United States Congress shall have power "to regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and amon ...
because Congress permitted state authorities to collect such tolls and to use the proceeds for non-Turnpike purposes. The decision also held that the imposition of tolls did not infringe a constitutional right to travel "because plaintiffs have not alleged that their right to travel to, from, and within Pennsylvania has been deterred." The decision upheld a district court decision dismissing the suit brought by the Owner–Operator Independent Drivers Association, a trucking lobby group. *In July 2020, Shwartz wrote for the unanimous panel when it found that a payday lender owned by the Otoe–Missouria Tribe of Indians could not compel arbitration to defeat a
RICO The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization. RICO was ...
class action lawsuit brought by borrowers because the
choice of law clause In contract law, a choice of law clause or proper law clause is a term of a contract in which the parties specify that any dispute arising under the contract shall be determined in accordance with the law of a particular jurisdiction. It determi ...
in the loans had adopted only the tribe's own law.


Personal

Shwartz is the longtime companion of James Nobile, the head of the public corruption unit for New Jersey's federal prosecutor. She has been a resident of
East Rutherford East Rutherford is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is an inner-ring suburb of New York City, located west of Midtown Manhattan. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 10,022, an inc ...
, New Jersey.


See also

* Barack Obama judicial appointment controversies *
List of Jewish American jurists This is a list of notable Jewish American jurists. For other famous Jewish Americans, see Lists of American Jews. Supreme Court of the United States United States courts of appeals United States district courts * Ronnie Abrams, J ...


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shwartz, Patty 1961 births Living people 20th-century American Jews Assistant United States attorneys Fordham University faculty Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit People from East Rutherford, New Jersey Lawyers from Paterson, New Jersey People from Pompton Lakes, New Jersey Pompton Lakes High School alumni Rutgers University alumni Rutgers School of Law–Newark faculty United States court of appeals judges appointed by Barack Obama United States magistrate judges University of Pennsylvania Law School alumni 21st-century American women judges 21st-century American Jews