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Margaret R. Guzman

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Margaret Guzman
Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
Incumbent
Assumed office
March 3, 2023
Appointed byJoe Biden
Preceded byTimothy S. Hillman
First Justice of the Ayer District Court
In office
2017 – March 3, 2023
Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Trial Court
In office
2009–2017
Appointed byDeval Patrick
Personal details
Born
Margaret Rose Guzman

1960 (age 63–64)
Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S.
EducationClark University (BA)
Boston University (JD)

Margaret Rose Guzman (born 1960)[1] is an American attorney serving as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. She previously served as a judge of the Ayer District Court in Middlesex County, Massachusetts.

Education

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Guzman initially enrolled at the University of Southern Maine for her undergraduate education, but transferred to Clark University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1989. She received her Juris Doctor from the Boston University School of Law in 1992.[2][3]

Career

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From 1992 to 2005, Guzman served as a public defender for the Massachusetts Committee for Public Counsel Services. She was a sole practitioner in Worcester, Massachusetts, from 2005 to 2009. From 2009 to 2017, she served as a judge on Dudley District Court.[4] In 2012, the special counsel for the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court noted that Guzman had acquitted all 149 defendants who appeared before her in bench trials on drunk driving charges. The report, which did not allege judicial misconduct, called for reform of procedures to ensure that lawyers did not engage in judge shopping.[5] She joined the Ayer District Court in 2017 and left in 2023 to become a federal judge.[6]

Federal judicial service

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On July 13, 2022, President Joe Biden nominated Guzman to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. President Biden nominated Guzman to the seat vacated by Judge Timothy S. Hillman, who assumed senior status on July 1, 2022.[7] On September 21, 2022, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[8] Conservatives and law enforcement attacked her nomination, claiming that she is reflexively pro-criminal defendant and pointing out that Guzman had acquitted all 149 defendants who appeared before her in bench trials on drunk driving charges while serving as a judge on Dudley District Court.[9] On December 1, 2022, her nomination was reported out of committee by a 12–10 vote.[10] On January 3, 2023, her nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate; she was renominated later the same day.[11] On February 2, 2023, her nomination was reported out of committee by an 11–9 vote.[12] On February 28, 2023, the Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 49–48 vote, with the Vice President Kamala Harris voting for the affirmative.[13] On March 1, 2023, her nomination was confirmed by a 49–48 vote, with the vice president casting the tie breaking vote.[14] She received her judicial commission on March 3, 2023.[15] She is the first Hispanic judge to serve on the District Court for the District of Massachusetts.[6][16]

Notable cases

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In December 2023, Guzman allowed a lawsuit against 3M and other corporations to proceed. The lawsuit was filed by Massachusetts homeowners who had their water tested and found that their drinking water contained excessive and potentially dangerous amounts of PFAS.[17][18]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
  2. ^ STAFF, TELEGRAM & GAZETTE. "Guzman and Keamy are nominated for judgeships". The Worcester Telegram & Gazette. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  3. ^ Lynch, Melissa (2020-09-21). "The Clark community recalls the life and legacy of Ruth Bader Ginsburg". Clark Now | Clark University. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  4. ^ "Judge Margaret Guzman – Nominee to the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts". 18 August 2022.
  5. ^ "High rates of acquittal when drunken-driving cases go to bench trials".
  6. ^ a b "President Biden Names Twenty-Second Round of Judicial Nominees" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. July 13, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  7. ^ "Nominations Sent to the Senate" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. July 13, 2022.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  8. ^ "Nominations". Washington, D.C.: United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. September 21, 2022.
  9. ^ Burrell, Chris; Simpson, Neal (November 2, 2012). "High rates of acquittal when drunken-driving cases go to bench trials". patriotledger.com. Retrieved June 4, 2023.
  10. ^ "Results of Executive Business Meeting – December 1, 2022" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  11. ^ "Nominations Sent to the Senate" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. January 3, 2023.
  12. ^ "Results of Executive Business Meeting – February 2, 2023" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved February 2, 2023.
  13. ^ "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: Margaret R. Guzman to be U.S. District Judge for the District of Massachusetts)". United States Senate. February 28, 2023. Retrieved February 28, 2023.
  14. ^ "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Margaret R. Guzman, of Massachusetts, to be U.S. District Judge for the District of Massachusetts)". United States Senate. March 1, 2023. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
  15. ^ Margaret R. Guzman at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  16. ^ Stoico, Nick (July 13, 2022). "Biden nominates Judge Guzman for Mass. federal court; would be first Hispanic judge - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  17. ^ "Biden Judge Rules that Proposed Class Action Against Corporations for Contaminating Drinking Water Should Proceed". PFAW. January 3, 2024. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  18. ^ "Ryan v. Greif" (PDF). Courthouse News. December 21, 2023. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
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Legal offices
Preceded by Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
2023–present 		Incumbent


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