Donald W. Molloy (born July 18, 1946) is a

Senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

United States district judge of the

United States District Court for the District of Montana United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

Early life and education

Born into an Irish-American family in Butte, Montana, Molloy received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Montana in 1968 and a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from the University of Montana School of Law in 1976, where he was a member of the Law Review.Carl Tobias, "Senate needs to finish voting soon", ''The Missoulian'' (July 24, 1996), p. 4. He was in the United States Navy, Naval Aviation from 1968 to 1973, where he became a lieutenant and served on the aircraft carrier

USS John F. Kennedy (CVA-67) USS ''John F. Kennedy'' (CV-67) (formerly CVA-67), the only ship of her class, is an aircraft carrier, formerly of the United States Navy. Considered a supercarrier, she is a variant of the , and the last Marine propulsion, conventionally power ...

. He was a

law clerk A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person, generally someone who provides direct counsel and assistance to a lawyer or judge by researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court. Judicial clerks often play significant ...

to Judge

James F. Battin James Franklin Battin (February 13, 1925 – September 27, 1996) was a Republican United States Representative from Montana, and later was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Montana. Educatio ...

of the

from 1976 to 1978. He was in private practice in

Billings Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, with a population of 117,116 as of the 2020 census. Located in the south-central portion of the state, it is the seat of Yellowstone County and the principal city of the Billings Metrop ...

, Montana from 1978 to 1995, where he was recognized as "one of the ablest lawyers in the state", holding various leadership roles in organizations in the legal community.

Federal judicial service

When long-serving district judge

Paul G. Hatfield Paul Gerhart Hatfield (April 29, 1928 – July 3, 2000) was an American attorney, politician, and jurist. He served briefly as United States Senator from Montana in 1978, and then as a United States district judge of the United States District ...

announced his intent to take senior status in 1995, numerous Montana attorneys put themselves forward as potential successors on the

, including Molloy. Senator Max Baucus recommended Molloy to President Bill Clinton,"Swearing-in set for U.S. judge", ''The Billings Gazette'' (August 15, 1996), p. C-1. who nominated Molloy to the seat on December 21, 1995. Molloy was confirmed by the United States Senate on July 18, 1996, and received his commission on August 1, 1996. He served as chief judge from 2001 to 2008, and declared his intent to retire in December 2010,"Judge Molloy to retire from active service", ''The Twin Falls Times-News'' (December 24, 2010), p. 2. finally assuming senior status on August 16, 2011. Among his more noted rulings was a decision to return wolves in Montana and Idaho to the endangered species list, over the objection of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Molloy, Donald W. 1946 births Living people Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Montana United States district court judges appointed by Bill Clinton University of Montana alumni United States Navy officers American people of Irish descent People from Butte, Montana 20th-century American judges 21st-century American judges