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Charles Atchley
2020 - Present
4
Charles Edward Atchley, Jr. (also known as Chuck) is a judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. He was nominated by President Donald Trump (R) on September 22, 2020, and confirmed by a 54-41 vote of the U.S. Senate on December 17, 2020. To see a full list of judges appointed by Donald Trump, click here.
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee is one of 94 U.S. District Courts. They are the general trial courts of the United States federal courts. To learn more about the court, click here.
Atchley was an assistant United States attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee from 2001 to 2020.
Judicial nominations and appointments
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee (2020-present)
- See also: Federal judges nominated by Donald Trump
On September 22, 2020, President Donald Trump (R) nominated Atchley to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. He was confirmed by a 54-41 vote of the U.S. Senate on December 17, 2020.[1] He received commission on December 22, 2020.[2] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.
 |
| Nominee Information |
| Name: Charles Atchley |
| Court: United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee |
| Progress |
| Confirmed 86 days after nomination. |
| Questionnaire: Questionnaire |
| QFRs: QFRs (Hover over QFRs to read more) |
Confirmation vote
The U.S. Senate confirmed Atchley by a vote of 54-41 on December 17, 2020.[1] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.
| Atchley confirmation vote (December 17, 2020) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Yea | Nay | No vote | ||||||
| 6 | 39 | 1 | |||||||
| 48 | 0 | 4 | |||||||
| 0 | 2 | 0 | |||||||
| Total | 54 | 41 | 5 | ||||||
Change in Senate rules
Atchley was confirmed to a U.S. District Court under a new precedent the Senate established.
On April 3, 2019, the U.S. Senate voted 51-48 in favor of a change to chamber precedent lowering the maximum time allowed for debate on executive nominees to posts below the Cabinet level and on nominees to district court judgeships from 30 hours after invoking cloture to two.[3]
The change was passed under a procedure, often referred to as the nuclear option, that requires 51 votes rather than 60.[4]
It was the third use of the nuclear option in Senate history. In 2013, it was used to eliminate the 60-vote threshold to confirm presidential nominees, except those to the Supreme Court. In 2017, it was used to eliminate the 60-vote threshold required to confirm Supreme Court nominees.[5] For more, see Filibuster and reconciliation in the United States Congress.
Senate Judiciary Committee hearing
Atchley had his hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on November 18, 2020.[1] The committee voted 13-9 to advance his nomination to the full Senate on December 10, 2020.[6]
Nomination
On September 16, 2020, President Donald Trump (R) announced his intent to nominate Atchley to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee.[7] The president officially nominated Atchley on September 22, 2020.[1]
Atchley was nominated to replace Judge Harry Mattice, who assumed senior status on March 10, 2020.
Atchley was nominated based on suggestions by Tennessee Senators Lamar Alexander (R) and Marsha Blackburn (R). Alexander said in a statement after Atchley's nomination announcement, "He is a man of good character, good temperament, high intelligence, and he has a high respect for the law."[8]
The American Bar Association unanimously rated Atchley qualified for the position.[9] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.
Education
Atchley was born in 1966 in Knoxville, Tennessee. He earned his B.A. from the University of Tennessee in 1989, and his J.D. from Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law in 1993.[10]
Professional career
- 2020-present: Judge, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee
- 2001-2020: Assistant U.S. attorney, United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee
- 2018-2020: First assistant U.S. attorney
- 2006-2018: Supervisory assistant U.S. attorney
- 1994-2001: Assistant district attorney general, Office of the District Attorney General
- 1994: Associate, Scott & Associates
- 1993-1994: Staff attorney, Family Inns of America
- 1992-1993: Law clerk, Office of the District Attorney in Birmingham, Alabama[10]
Awards and associations
Awards
- 2018: Outstanding counterintelligence investigation of the year, FBI
- 2006: Personal commendation from FBI Director Robert Mueller
- 2009-2019: Sustained superior performance award, U.S. Department of Justice[10]
Associations
- American Bar Association
- Hamilton Burnett American Inn of Court
- 2011-2012: President
- Knoxville Bar Association
- 2014: Board of directors
- Knoxville Bar Foundation
- National Association of Assistant United States Attorneys
- National District Attorneys Association
- Sevier County Bar Association
- Tennessee Bar Association[10]
About the court
| Eastern District of Tennessee |
|---|
| Sixth Circuit |
|
| Judgeships |
| Posts: 5 |
| Judges: 5 |
| Vacancies: 0 |
| Judges |
| Chief: Travis Randall McDonough |
| Active judges: Charles Atchley Jr., Clifton L. Corker, Katherine Crytzer, Travis Randall McDonough, Thomas Varlan Senior judges: |
The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee is one of 94 United States district courts. When decisions of the court are appealed, they are appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit based in downtown Cincinnati at the Potter A. Stewart Federal Courthouse and Building.
The Eastern District of Tennessee has original jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.
Based in Knoxville, the Eastern District of Tennessee maintains branch facilities in Chattanooga, Greenville, and Winchester.
There are four court divisions, each covering the following counties:
The Northeastern Division, covering Carter, Cocke, Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, Hawkins, Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi and Washington counties.
The Northern Division, covering Anderson, Blount, Campbell, Claiborne, Grainger, Jefferson, Knox, Loudon, Monroe, Morgan, Roane, Scott, Sevier and Union counties.
The Southern Division, covering Bledsoe, Bradley, Hamilton, McMinn, Marion, Meigs, Polk, Rhea and Sequatchie counties.
The Winchester Division, covering Bedford, Coffee, Franklin, Grundy, Lincoln, Moore, Warren and Van Buren counties.
To read opinions published by this court, click here.
The federal nomination process
Federal judges are nominated by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate. There are multiple steps to the process:
- The president nominates an individual for a judicial seat.
- The nominee fills out a questionnaire and is reviewed by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
- The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing with the nominee, questioning them about things like their judicial philosophy, past rulings or opinions, etc.
- As part of this process, the committee sends a blue slip to senators from the home state in which the judicial nomination was received, allowing them to express their approval or disapproval of the nominee.
- After the hearing, the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote to approve or return the nominee.
- If approved, the nominee is voted on by the full Senate.
- If the Committee votes to return the nominee to the president, the president has the opportunity to re-nominate the individual.
- The Senate holds a vote on the candidate.
- If the Senate confirms the nomination, the nominee receives a commission to serve a lifelong position as a federal judge.
- If the Senate does not confirm the nomination, that nominee does not become a judge.
See also
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee
- United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Biography from the Federal Judicial Center
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee
- United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Congress.gov, "PN2246 — Charles Edward Atchley Jr. — The Judiciary," accessed November 18, 2020
- ↑ Federal Judicial Center, "Atchley, Charles Edward, Jr." accessed December 28, 2020
- ↑ The Hill, "GOP triggers 'nuclear option' to speed up Trump picks," April 3, 2019
- ↑ Axios, "Senate GOP invokes 'nuclear option' to speed up confirmations of Trump nominees," April 3, 2019
- ↑ NBC News, "McConnell to use 'nuclear option' to confirm lower-level nominees," April 2, 2019
- ↑ Senate Judiciary Committee, "Results of Executive Business Meeting," December 10, 2020
- ↑ WhiteHouse.gov, "President Donald J. Trump Announces Judicial Nominees," September 16, 2020
- ↑ WBIR.com, "Trump nominates 2 to fill East TN federal judicial vacancies," September 16, 2020
- ↑ American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III and Article IV judicial nominees," accessed November 18, 2020
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 Senate Judiciary Committee, "Questionnaire for judicial nominees," accessed November 18, 2020
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee 2020-Present |
Succeeded by - |
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|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 |
Thomas Parker • Elizabeth Branch • Neil Gorsuch • Amul Thapar • David C. Nye • John K. Bush • Kevin Newsom • Timothy J. Kelly • Ralph Erickson • Scott Palk • Trevor McFadden • Joan Larsen • Amy Coney Barrett • Allison Eid • Stephanos Bibas • Donald Coggins Jr. • Dabney Friedrich • Greg Katsas • Steven Grasz • Don Willett • James Ho • William L. Campbell Jr. • David Stras • Tilman E. Self III • Karen Gren Scholer • Terry A. Doughty • Claria Horn Boom • John Broomes • Rebecca Grady Jennings • Kyle Duncan • Kurt Engelhardt • Michael B. Brennan • Joel Carson • Robert Wier • Fernando Rodriguez Jr. • Annemarie Carney Axon • | ||
| 2018 |
Andrew Oldham • Amy St. Eve • Michael Scudder • John Nalbandian • Mark Bennett • Andrew Oldham • Britt Grant • Colm Connolly • Maryellen Noreika • Jill Otake • Jeffrey Beaverstock • Emily Coody Marks • Holly Lou Teeter • Julius Richardson • Charles B. Goodwin • Barry Ashe • Stan Baker • A. Marvin Quattlebaum Jr. • Terry F. Moorer • Susan Baxter • William Jung • Alan Albright • Dominic Lanza • Eric Tostrud • Charles Williams • Nancy E. Brasel • James Sweeney • Kari A. Dooley • Marilyn J. Horan • Robert Summerhays • Brett Kavanaugh • David Porter • Liles Burke • Michael Juneau • Peter Phipps • Lance Walker • Richard Sullivan • Eli Richardson • Ryan Nelson • Chad F. Kenney, Sr. • Susan Brnovich • William M. Ray, II • Jeremy Kernodle • Thomas Kleeh • J.P. Hanlon • Mark Norris • Jonathan Kobes • Michael Brown • David Counts | ||
| 2019 |
Eric Miller • Chad Readler • Eric Murphy • Neomi Rao • Paul Matey • Allison Jones Rushing • Bridget S. Bade • Roy Altman • Patrick Wyrick • Holly Brady • David Morales • Andrew Brasher • J. Campbell Barker • Rodolfo Ruiz • Daniel Domenico • Michael Truncale • Michael Park • Joseph Bianco • Raúl Arias-Marxuach • Daniel Collins • Joshua Wolson • Wendy Vitter • Kenneth Kiyul Lee • Kenneth Bell • Stephen Clark • Howard Nielson • Rodney Smith • Jean-Paul Boulee • Sarah Daggett Morrison • Rossie Alston • Pamela A. Barker • Corey Maze • Greg Guidry • Matthew Kacsmaryk • Allen Winsor • Carl Nichols • James Cain, Jr. • Tom Barber • J. Nicholas Ranjan • Clifton L. Corker • Peter Phipps • Daniel Bress • Damon Leichty • Wendy W. Berger • Peter Welte • Michael Liburdi • William Shaw Stickman • Mark Pittman • Karin J. Immergut • Jason Pulliam • Brantley Starr • Brian Buescher • James Wesley Hendrix • Timothy Reif • Martha Pacold • Sean Jordan • Mary Rowland • John M. Younge • Jeff Brown • Ada Brown • Steven Grimberg • Stephanie A. Gallagher • Steven Seeger • Stephanie Haines • Mary McElroy • David J. Novak • Frank W. Volk • Charles Eskridge • Rachel Kovner • Justin Walker • T. Kent Wetherell • Danielle Hunsaker • Lee Rudofsky • Jennifer Philpott Wilson • William Nardini • Steven Menashi • Robert J. Luck • Eric Komitee • Douglas Cole • John Sinatra • Sarah Pitlyk • Barbara Lagoa • Richard Myers II • Sherri Lydon • Patrick Bumatay • R. Austin Huffaker • Miller Baker • Anuraag Singhal • Karen Marston • Jodi Dishman • Mary Kay Vyskocil • Matthew McFarland • John Gallagher • Bernard Jones • Kea Riggs • Robert J. Colville • Stephanie Dawkins Davis • Gary R. Brown • David Barlow • Lewis Liman | ||
| 2020 |
Lawrence VanDyke • Daniel Traynor • John Kness • Joshua Kindred • Philip Halpern • Silvia Carreno-Coll • Scott Rash • John Heil • Anna Manasco • John L. Badalamenti • Drew Tipton • Andrew Brasher • Cory Wilson • Scott Hardy • David Joseph • Matthew Schelp • John Cronan • Justin Walker • Brett H. Ludwig • Christy Wiegand • Thomas Cullen • Diane Gujarati • Stanley Blumenfeld • Mark Scarsi • John Holcomb • Stephen P. McGlynn • Todd Robinson • Hala Jarbou • David Dugan • Iain D. Johnston • Franklin U. Valderrama • John Hinderaker • Roderick Young • Michael Newman • Aileen Cannon • James Knepp • Kathryn Kimball Mizelle • Benjamin Beaton • Kristi Johnson • Toby Crouse • Philip Calabrese • Taylor McNeel • Thomas Kirsch • Stephen Vaden • Katherine Crytzer • Fernando Aenlle-Rocha • Charles Atchley • Joseph Dawson | ||
| 2025 |
Whitney Hermandorfer • Joshua Divine • Cristian M. Stevens • Zachary Bluestone • Emil Bove | ||
Federal courts:
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Tennessee, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Tennessee, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee
State courts:
Tennessee Supreme Court • Tennessee Court of Appeals • Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals • Tennessee Circuit Court • Tennessee Chancery Courts • Tennessee Criminal Court • Tennessee Probate Court • Tennessee General Sessions Court • Tennessee Juvenile Court • Tennessee Municipal Court
State resources:
Courts in Tennessee • Tennessee judicial elections • Judicial selection in Tennessee