Appointed by Barack Obama Preceded by John Gilbert | Name Staci Yandle | |
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Alma mater University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Vanderbilt University Residence Carlyle, Illinois, United States Education Vanderbilt University Law School, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | ||
Staci Michelle Yandle (born 1961) is a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois.
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Biography
Yandle received a Bachelor of Science degree in political science in 1983 from the University of Illinois. She received a Juris Doctor in 1987 from the Vanderbilt University School of Law. From 1987 to 2003, she was an associate with the law firm of Carr, Korein, Schlichter, Kunin, Montroy, Glass & Bogard. From 2003 to 2007, she was a partner with The Rex Carr Law Firm LLC. From 2007 to 2014, she was a solo practitioner in O'Fallon, Illinois. In addition to her practice of law, she served on the Illinois Advisory Committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights from 1992 to 1996, and by appointment on the Illinois Gaming Board, from 1999 to 2001. She has also served on the board of governors of the American Association for Justice and the St. Clair County Bar Association. She is a former president of the Metro East Bar Association.
Personal
Staci Yandle is openly gay. She is the first openly gay judge in the 7th Circuit, which covers Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. She also is the first African-American District Judge ever to sit on the federal bench in the Southern District of Illinois.
Federal judicial service
On January 16, 2014, President Obama nominated Yandle to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, to the seat being vacated by Judge John Phil Gilbert, who took senior status on March 15, 2014. She received a hearing before the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary on March 12, 2014. On April 3, 2014 her nomination was reported out of committee by a vote of 17-1. On June 12, 2014, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid filed for a motion to invoke cloture on the nomination. On Monday, June 16, 2014 the United States Senate voted 55-37 on the motion to invoke cloture. On Tuesday, June 17, 2014 The United States Senate voted 52-44 in favor of final confirmation. She received her judicial commission on June 19, 2014. Yandle was invested as a member of the court on August 21, 2014.