Loretta A. Preska
Encyclopedia
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is a federal district court. Appeals from the Southern District of New York are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case...
and a former nominee to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Background
Judge Preska attended The College of Saint RoseThe College of Saint Rose
The College of Saint Rose is a private, independent, coeducational college in Albany, New York, founded in 1920 by the Sisters of Saint Joseph. The College enrolls a total of approximately 5,000 students ....
(B.A. 1970), Fordham University School of Law
Fordham University School of Law
Fordham University School of Law is a part of Fordham University in the United States. The School is located in the Borough of Manhattan in New York City, and is one of eight ABA-approved law schools in that city.-Overview:According to the U.S. News & World Report, 1,516 J.D. students attend...
(J.D. 1973), and New York University School of Law
New York University School of Law
The New York University School of Law is the law school of New York University. Established in 1835, the school offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees in law, and is located in Greenwich Village, in the New York City borough of Manhattan....
(LL.M. 1978).
She was an attorney in private practice in New York City from 1973 until 1992, initially with Cahill Gordon & Reindel
Cahill Gordon & Reindel
Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP is a prominent New York-based international law firm with offices in New York, Washington, D.C. and London...
and then with Hertzog, Calamari & Gleason (now Winston & Strawn).
Judge Preska was nominated by President George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
on March 31, 1992, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is a federal district court. Appeals from the Southern District of New York are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case...
vacated by Robert Joseph Ward
Robert Joseph Ward
Robert Joseph Ward was a federal judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Judge Ward received a B.S. from Harvard College in 1945 and an LL.B. from Harvard Law School in 1949...
. She was confirmed
Advice and consent
Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts, describing a situation in which the executive branch of a government enacts something previously approved of by the legislative branch.-General:The expression is...
by the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
on August 11, 1992, and received her commission on August 12.
Consideration for higher courts
In 2007, it was reported that Judge Preska was on President Bush's short list of potential Supreme CourtSupreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
nominees.
On September 9, 2008, Judge Preska was nominated by President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
to be a United States Circuit Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Since Preska was nominated after July 1, 2008, the unofficial start date of the Thurmond Rule
Thurmond Rule
The Thurmond Rule is an informal and somewhat amorphous rule of thumb in the United States Senate. While it originated with former Senator Strom Thurmond's opposition to President Lyndon Johnson's nomination of Justice Abe Fortas to be Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in June of 1968, its...
during a presidential election year, no hearings were scheduled on her nomination, and the nomination was returned to Bush at the end of his term.
Notable cases
In 2009 Preska presided over Bloomberg L.P. v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The suit sought under the Freedom of Information ActFreedom of Information Act (United States)
The Freedom of Information Act is a federal freedom of information law that allows for the full or partial disclosure of previously unreleased information and documents controlled by the United States government. The Act defines agency records subject to disclosure, outlines mandatory disclosure...
to require the Fed to divulge the names of private financial institutions that received $1.2 trillion in public bailout money, along with the types and amounts of collateral provided. In a championship victory for those advocating more transparency with the Federal Reserve System,
on August 24, 2009, Preska ruled against the Federal Reserve's attempts to block the release of the recipient names.
On May 21, 2009, the accused Somali pirate was arraigned before Judge Preska. Bloomberg report on pirate hearing
On June 9, 2009, Judge Preska heard the plea of Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, the first detainee brought from Guantanamo Bay to stand trial in a U.S. civilian court. Reuters report on the hearing
Personal
Preska is married to Thomas J. Kavaler, with whom she attended law school. Kavaler was the editor in chief of the Fordham Law Review, and is currently a partner at Cahill Gordon & ReindelCahill Gordon & Reindel
Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP is a prominent New York-based international law firm with offices in New York, Washington, D.C. and London...
.