Paula Xinis (born Panagiota Xinis, 1968) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as 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 U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. She was appointed in 2016 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 ...

. She is best known for her role as judge in the deportation case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, receiving national and worldwide attention.

Biography

Xinis is of Greek ancestry. She received 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, summa cum laude, in 1991 from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

. She received 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 ...

in 1997 from

Yale Law School Yale Law School (YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824. The 2020–21 acceptance rate was 4%, the lowest of any law school in the United ...

. She began her legal career 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 ...

for Judge

Diana Gribbon Motz Diana Jane Gribbon Motz (born July 15, 1943) is a senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Early life and education Born in Washington, D.C., Motz was raised in a legal family. Her father ...

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 ...

, from 1997 to 1998. From 1998 to 2011, she served as an assistant federal public defender, serving as director of Training for the office from 2006 to 2011. She served at the law firm of Murphy, Falcon & Murphy in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, Maryland, as a senior trial attorney from 2011 and as a partner from 2013 to 2016. She practiced both civil and criminal litigation.

Federal judicial service

On March 26, 2015, President

nominated Xinis to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, to the seat vacated by Judge Deborah K. Chasanow, who assumed senior status on October 3, 2014. Her nomination was reported from 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 September 17, 2015, 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 May 16, 2016, the Senate confirmed her nomination by a 53–34 vote. She received her judicial commission on May 18, 2016.

Notable rulings

In '' Abrego Garcia v. Noem'', No. 25-cv-951 (Apr. 4, 2025), Judge Xinis ordered the United States government to "facilitate" and "effectuate" the return of illegal immigrant Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia back to the United States, whom the government concedes was removed due to an "administrative error". Parts of this ruling were later affirmed by the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...

, which however stopped short of requiring the government to "effectuate" Garcia's return. https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24a949_lkhn.pdf

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Xinis, Paula Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland United States district court judges appointed by Barack Obama 21st-century American women judges Public defenders American women lawyers Lawyers from Baltimore Yale Law School alumni University of Virginia alumni People from Mineola, New York American people of Greek descent 1968 births Living people

Biography

Federal judicial service

Notable rulings

See also

References

External links