Barbara M. Keenan

The Honorable Barbara Milano Keenan is a United States Circuit Judge of United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and a former justice on the Supreme Court of Virginia.

From 1982 to 1985, Keenan sat on the bench of the Fairfax Circuit Court, and from 1980 to 1982 on the bench of the Fairfax County General District Court.

Early life and education

One of four children of James Vincent Milano and the former Ann Pozega, Barbara Louise Milano was born in 1950 in Vienna, Austria, where her father, an Army colonel, was the chief of intelligence operations. From 1967 to 1971, Milano attended Cornell University, graduating with a B.A. in American History. She took her J.D. from George Washington University in 1974.[1][2]

Professional career

Following her admission to the Virginia Bar in June 1974, Ardis was an assistant commonwealth's attorney for Fairfax County until 1976.[3] After leaving the Commonwealth's Attorney's office, she engaged in private practice, first as a solo practitioner from 1976 to 1978 and later as a name partner in the firm of Keenan, Ardis, and Roehrenbeck from June 1978 to 1980 with Lawrence R. Keenan and David C. Roehrenbeck.

In December 1979, Ardis was one of three nominees, along with Richard T. Horan and Alphonse J. Audet, for the seat on the bench of the General District Court that opened up when Judge J. Mason Grove retired.[4] Following her election by the General Assembly, Ardis began serving on the bench on February 1, 1980.[5]

Following the resignation of Judge James C. Cacheris to become a federal judge in December 1981, Judge Keenan was one of three candidates, along with Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Judge Johanna L. Fitzpatrick and attorney Quinlan H. Hancock, to replace Judge Cacheris on the Circuit Court.[6] In February 1982, Judge Keenan was elected to the bench of the Circuit Court, and was sworn in on February 26, becoming the first woman to sit on the bench of a circuit court in Virginia.[1]

The General Assembly in 1983 created the Court of Appeals of Virginia to serve as an intermediate court between the circuit courts and the Supreme Court of Virginia, and Judge Keenan was elected as one of the first ten members of the court on December 17, 1984.[7]

After six years on the Court of Appeals, Keenan sought the seat on the Supreme Court of Virginia opened by the retirement of Judge Charles S. Russell. Following her election in February 1991, Judge Keenan was sworn in to the bench of the Supreme Court on July 2.[8]

On September 14, 2009, President Barack Obama nominated Justice Keenan for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.[9] Five months later, on March 2, 2010, Keenan's appointment was confirmed by a 99-0 vote of the U.S. Senate.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Shiver, Jube, Jr. "New Judge: She's One of the Boys." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Feb 27 1982. ProQuest. Web. 5 June 2017.
  2. ↑ "Transcript: Judge Barbara M. Keenan." Interview by Cassandra Newby-Alexander. Virginia Appellate Court History. N.p., 6 June 2013. Web. 5 June 2017.
  3. ↑ Eisen, Jack. "First Woman Picked to Sit as Circuit Court Judge in Virginia." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Feb 17 1982. ProQuest. Web. 4 June 2017.
  4. ↑ Grubisich, Thomas. "Five Fairfax County Lawyers Nominated to Lower Court Seats." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Dec 14 1979. ProQuest. Web. 5 June 2017.
  5. ↑ Bauer, Pat. "Rappahannock Lawyer Gets Juvenile Judgeship." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Jan 29 1980. ProQuest. Web. 5 June 2017.
  6. ↑ Bohlen, Celestine. "Two Women in Race for Fairfax Circuit Bench." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Feb 04 1982. ProQuest. Web. 5 June 2017.
  7. ↑ "Assembly Elects Judges for New Virginia Court." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Dec 18 1984. ProQuest. Web. 5 June 2017.
  8. ↑ "New Justice Takes Oath for State Supreme Court." The Washington Post (1974-Current file): 1. Jul 04 1991. ProQuest. Web. 5 June 2017.
  9. ↑ Jackman, Tom. "Va. Judge Nominated for Appeals Court; Alexandria Woman is a Trailblazer." The Washington PostSep 15 2009. ProQuest. Web. 5 June 2017.

External links