Nomination of Ellen Lipton Hollander to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Maryland

Floor Speech

Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I am pleased to rise today in support of the confirmation of two judicial confirmations pending before the Senate from my home State of Maryland. Both James Bredar and Ellen Hollander have been nominated by the President to be U.S. district judges for the District of Maryland.

I was pleased to work with our senior Senator, Ms. Mikulski, to recommend these nominations to the President last year. I chaired their confirmation hearing in May of this year before the Judiciary Committee, on which I serve. These two judges were approved by a voice vote in the Judiciary Committee in June.

Judge Ellen Hollander currently serves as a judge on the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, Maryland's second highest court, which hears mandatory appeals from our State trial courts in Maryland.

She has served as a judge on that court since 1994. Judge Hollander comes to the Senate with an impressive amount of experience in Federal and State court. She served as a Federal prosecutor in Maryland for 4 years, served as a State circuit court judge in Baltimore City for 5 years, and has served as a State appellate court judge for 16 years. As a State trial court judge, she heard thousands of criminal and civil cases--hundreds of which went to verdict or final judgment--and handled both jury trials and bench trials. As an appellate judge, she has authored over 1,000 opinions.

The American Bar Association's Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary evaluated Judge Hollander's nomination and rated her unanimously ``well qualified,'' the highest possible rating.

Judge Hollander, really exemplifies the spirit of public service. She is well known by lawyers and jurors alike in Maryland for her meticulous reasoning process and well-crafted legal opinions. She really is a model of a fair and impartial judge who will dispense equal justice under the law. I know Judge Hollander has also supported efforts to reduce recidivism and is a strong supporter of our drug treatment courts and juvenile diversion programs.

Judge Jim Bredar also comes to the Senate with a wide range of courtroom and litigation experience. He served as a Federal prosecutor in Colorado for 4 years before coming to Maryland and serving as a Federal public defender for 6 years. Since 1998, he has served as a U.S. magistrate judge for U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, where he works closely with our judges of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. He conducts preliminary proceedings in felony cases, all proceedings in petty offense cases, and all proceedings in misdemeanor and civil matters upon the consent of the parties. Judge Bredar has conducted over 700 mediation and settlement conferences in civil cases.

Judge Bredar has been a member of the Maryland Bar since 1995. The American Bar Association's Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary evaluated Judge Bredar's nomination and rated him unanimously ``well qualified,'' the highest possible rating.

With Judge Bredar, I see a nominee who is genuinely concerned about broadening the access to justice of Americans to their courts. He believes that we can do better with both our criminal and civil justice systems. I know of Judge's Bredar work as a mediator in our Federal court's alternative dispute resolution program, which has received high praise from Maryland lawyers and litigants alike.

The people of Maryland will be well served by having Judge Bredar and Judge Hollander on the Federal bench in Baltimore. I look forward to the Senate confirming these two outstanding nominations.

We are extremely pleased that we are now getting a chance to vote on the confirmation of Judge Hollander to the Maryland District Court. Senator Mikulski has taken the leadership in bringing forward the nominations that we strongly support, the two of us.

I would yield the time to the senior Senator from Maryland.

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