Donald Trump’s judicial nominee for Montana has become the first pick of his second term to be declared “not qualified” by the American Bar Association, and the reason was straightforward: she simply hasn’t been a lawyer long enough.
Katie Lane, nominated to serve as a federal judge in Montana, received a “not qualified” rating from a majority of the ABA’s Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary on Wednesday, according to Reuters. The committee cited her less than nine years of legal experience, well short of the 12 years the ABA typically requires, and her lack of substantial courtroom and trial experience.
The ABA was careful to note that Lane is well-regarded by her peers. Committee chair Pamela Roberts said roughly 200 members of the bench and bar were consulted, and Lane “is viewed as a talented lawyer, indeed at the top of her peer group.”
But talent, the committee concluded, doesn’t substitute for experience.
Lane, who is in her 30s, graduated from George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School in 2017. Her resume includes conservative clerkships, Jones Day, the Montana attorney general’s office, the hard-right firm Consovoy McCarthy, a Ted Cruz Senate internship, and a stint at the Republican National Committee.
Trump’s administration has already tried to sideline the ABA by restricting its ability to vet nominees. The bar association has continued publishing ratings anyway.
In Trump’s first term, 10 nominees received “not qualified” ratings. Lane is the first of his second term.
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