Justin R. Walker

On June 19, 2019, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Walker to serve as a United States District Judge for the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky. Walker was nominated to the seat vacated by Judge Joseph H. McKinley Jr., who took senior status on June 9, 2019.[12] The American Bar Association (ABA) rated Walker "not qualified," saying that Walker "has a very substantial gap, namely the absence of any significant trial experience."[13] In a letter, the chairman of the ABA committee said "it has no questions about Walker's temperament or integrity and that it believes he has great potential to serve as a federal judge."[14]

On June 24, 2019, his nomination was sent to the Senate. On July 31, 2019, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[15] On October 17, 2019, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 12–10 vote.[16] On October 24, 2019, the Senate voted 50–39 to invoke cloture on his nomination[17] and later that day his nomination was confirmed by a vote of 50–41.[18] He received his judicial commission on October 25, 2019. His service terminated on September 2, 2020, due to appointment to another judicial position.

In April 2020, Walker blocked Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer from implementing an order preventing drive-in church services on Easter to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Walker compared the order to "the pages of a dystopian novel", and said that Fischer "criminalized the communal celebration of Easter".[4] Vox described Walker's opinion as "oddly partisan", noting that there was no actual ban on drive-in church services,[19] and that Fischer had twice attempted to contact the court to communicate this fact, which would have rendered the case moot.[20] The Volokh Conspiracy described the opinion's rhetoric as "over-the-top"; the decision irrelevantly listed deceased former Klan members affiliated with the Democratic Party.[21][19] In August 2020, Walker ruled that photographer Chelsey Nelson is not bound by the Louisville Fairness Ordinance and cannot be compelled to photograph same-sex weddings, which she opposes due to her Christian faith.[22]

On April 3, 2020, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Walker to serve as Circuit Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.[23] On May 4, 2020, his nomination was sent to the Senate. President Trump nominated Walker to the seat being vacated by Judge Thomas B. Griffith, who will retire on September 1, 2020.[24] On May 6, 2020, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[25] On June 4, 2020, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 12–10 vote.[26] On June 17, 2020, the Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by a vote of 52–46. On June 18, 2020, the Senate confirmed his nomination by a vote of 51–42.[27] He received his judicial commission on September 2, 2020.

According to The New York Times, Walker's nomination was handpicked by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.[3] Walker has been described as McConnell's protégé.[4] In early March 2020, McConnell flew to Kentucky to participate in an investiture ceremony for Walker.[4] At the time of his nomination, Walker had no trial experience and had less than six months of experience as a judge.[3] On May 5, 2020, the American Bar Association rated Walker as "Well-Qualified" to serve on the Circuit Court. The ABA sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee explaining their rating after deeming Walker "Not Qualified" when he was nominated for his district court judgeship. The letter said "the Standing Committee believes that Judge Walker possesses a keen intellect, and his writing ability is exemplary. Judge Walker also has significant appellate experience, having clerked for both the D.C. Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States. Additionally, since our last rating, Judge Walker has served as a federal trial judge."[28][4][29]