Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr.

Waverly David Crenshaw Jr.
Judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee
Incumbent
Assumed office April 12, 2016
Appointed by	Barack Obama
Preceded by	William Joseph Haynes Jr.
Personal details
Born	December 17, 1956 Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Alma mater	Vanderbilt University B.A. Vanderbilt University Law School J.D.
Profession	Attorney

Waverly David Crenshaw Jr. (born December 17, 1956) is a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee.

Biography

Crenshaw was born on December 17, 1956 in Nashville, Tennessee.^[1] Crenshaw received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1978 from Vanderbilt University. He received a Juris Doctor in 1981 from Vanderbilt University Law School. From 1981 to 1982, he served as a law clerk to the Judges of the Chancery and Probate Court of Davidson County, Tennessee. From 1982 to 1984, he served as a law clerk to Judge John Trice Nixon of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee. He served as Assistant Attorney General of the State of Tennessee from 1984 to 1987. From 1987 to 1990, he was an associate at the law firm of Passino, Delaney & Hildebrand. He joined the law firm of Waller, Lansden, Dortch & Davis, LLP., in 1990 as an associate, becoming partner in 1994; becoming the first African-American attorney and partner at the firm. He specializes in labor and employment law.^[2][3][4]

Federal judicial service

On February 4, 2015, President Obama nominated Crenshaw to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, to the seat vacated by Judge William Joseph Haynes Jr., who took senior status on December 1, 2014.^[5][6] He received a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on June 10, 2015.^[7] On July 9, 2015 his nomination was reported out of committee by voice vote.^[8] The Senate confirmed his nomination on April 11, 2016, by a vote of 92 to 0.^[9] He received his commission on April 12, 2016. At the time of his confirmation, Waverly is only the second African-American federal judge on active status in Tennessee.^[10]

References

1. Lawyer Central profile
2. "President Obama Nominates Two to Serve on the United States District Courts" White House, February 4, 2015
3. "Nashville's Waverly Crenshaw Jr. Nominated to Federal Judgeship" The Tennessean, February 4, 2015
4. Official Biography at Waller, Lansden, Dortch & Davis, LLP.
5. "Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate" White House, February 4, 2015
6. "Nashville's Waverly Crenshaw Jr. Nominated to Federal Judgeship" The Tennessean, February 4, 2015
7. "Nominations" United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, June 10, 2015
8. Results of Executive Business Meeting – July 9, 2015
9. Roll call vote
10. Troyan, Mary (April 11, 2016). "Senate confirms Waverly Crenshaw for federal judgeship". The Tennessean. Retrieved April 11, 2016.

Sources

• Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr. at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.