I just received the August 2016 issue of On Appeal, the newsletter of the Third Circuit Bar Association. The new issue features a warm tribute to Judge Dolores Sloviter, who recently took inactive status, by her former clerk Nancy Winkelman. Winkelman is now a top appellate practitioner at Schnader and President of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. Winkelman writes:

. . . I have been so grateful to work with and come to know this most extraordinary jurist: a brilliant intellect, with an extraordinary work ethic; a courage, strength, and independence born of upbringing, character, and necessity; a drive always for the best in herself and everyone around her; a deep commitment to justice and to the judicial system; and that unique and most precious combination of grit and heart.

And, just as Judge Sloviter saw something in me that others may not have seen thirty years ago, so she has given me the opportunity to see something in her. Like many brilliant women of her generation who would come to succeed in a male profession, circumstances required Judge Sloviter to develop a tough exterior. She is of the small cadre of women who were the first in their fields; who were the only women in the room for far too long; who were always surrounded by men who, even when they had good intentions (and many did not), could not possibly have left their prejudices and stereotypes at the door.

And:

Appointed to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals by President Carter in 1979, Judge Sloviter was the first woman ever to serve as a judge on that Court. She was the first (and so far only) female Chief Judge of the Third Circuit. In fact, she is only the fourth woman in the entire country ever to serve as a Circuit Chief Judge at all. Judge Sloviter authored an astounding 808 precedential opinions in her almost 40-year tenure on the Court of Appeals, shaping the law in numerous areas, including antitrust and the First Amendment.

A fierce advocate for diversity and inclusiveness, as Chief Judge (a position she held from 1991 to 1998), Judge Sloviter created the ground-breaking Task Force on Equal Treatment in the Courts to examine racial and gender bias for the Third Circuit. She opened the Third Circuit Conference to all lawyers for the first time ever (a tradition that continues to this day). And she supported women and work-life balance in numerous ways, including offering part-time law clerk positions to working mothers.

It’s a lovely piece worth reading in full.

Also in this issue are detailed write-ups of State National by Reginald Sainvil of Reed Smith and Roberts v. Ferman by former Fisher clerk Devin Misour of Farrel & Reisinger.

The current On Appeal is not yet available on the 3CBA website, but you can download older issues at this link.

And if you practice in the Third Circuit and you’re not a 3CBA member yet, get on it. Dues are just $40, you can join here.