Judith Nelsen Keep (March 24, 1944 – September 14, 2004) was a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

of the

United States District Court for the Southern District of California The United States District Court for the Southern District of California (in case citations, S.D. Cal.) is a federal court in the Ninth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appe ...

Education and career

Born on March 24, 1944, in

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

, Keep received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in Humanities and Literature in 1966 from

Scripps College Scripps College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Claremont, California. It was founded as a member of the Claremont Colleges in 1 ...

. After graduation, she moved to San Diego and taught English at

the Bishop's School The Bishop's School is an independent college preparatory Episcopal day school located in La Jolla, California. Bishop's is known for its reputation in academics, arts, and athletics as well as its sizable endowment. The school offers courses for ...

La Jolla La Jolla ( , ) is a hilly, seaside neighborhood within the city of San Diego, California, United States, occupying of curving coastline along the Pacific Ocean. The population reported in the 2010 census was 46,781. La Jolla is surrounded on ...

. She received 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 ...

in 1970 from the San Diego School of Law (now the

University of San Diego School of Law The University of San Diego School of Law (USD Law) is the law school of the University of San Diego, a private Roman Catholic research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1954, the law school has held ABA approval since 1961. It ...

), graduating

summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

. She 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 ...

for Westgate-California, Inc. in 1970. She was an attorney with Defenders, Inc., in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

from 1971 to 1973. She was in private practice in San Diego from 1973 to 1976. She served as an Assistant

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...

in 1976. She served as a judge of the Municipal Court in San Diego from 1976 to 1980. In the 1970s, Keep organized a casual group with other female attorneys called the Old Girls Club.Anne Krueger, "First female federal judge in S.D. called inspirational"
San Diego Union-Tribune, September 15, 2004. Accessed December 26, 2007

Federal judicial service

Keep was nominated by President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

on May 9, 1980, to the

, to a new seat authorized by 92 Stat. 1629. She was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on June 26, 1980, and received her commission on June 30, 1980. She served as Chief Judge from 1991 to 1998. Her service terminated on September 14, 2004, due to her death in San Diego. Keep was the first female federal judge in her district and the first female Chief Judge of the district. As a member of the

Judicial Conference of the United States The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial cour ...

(JCUS), Judge Keep represented the Ninth Circuit District Judges at the JCUS from 1999 to 2002. She also was appointed by Chief Justice

William Rehnquist William Hubbs Rehnquist ( ; October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American attorney and jurist who served on the U.S. Supreme Court for 33 years, first as an associate justice from 1972 to 1986 and then as the 16th chief justice from ...

to the Defender Services Committee of the JCUS in 1998 and served through 2004. Her court handled many drug and immigrant smuggling cases. Keep made a significant contribution to court governance as a member of th
Judicial Council of the Ninth Circuit
for eight years. She first represented the chief district judges from 1994 to 1997. Her service to the council continued as president of the District Judges Association from 1997 to 1999, and then as the district judges’ representative to the JCUS from 1999 to 2002. Other service to the Ninth Circuit included chairing the Task Force on Judicial Wellness, which paved the way for groundbreaking efforts to promote health and wellness among judges, and the Federal Court Study Committee.

Death and legacy

Keep died of cancer on September 14, 2004, in San Diego. Every September since 2005, the San Diego Chapter of the Federal Bar Association has hosted a half-day federal civil practice seminar in Keep's name. In a March 30, 2015, ceremony, the new federal courthouse in San Diego was named the

James M. Carter and Judith N. Keep United States Courthouse The James M. Carter and Judith N. Keep United States Courthouse, also known simply as the Carter-Keep Courthouse, at 333 West Broadway in San Diego, California, is a sixteen-story United States federal courts, federal courthouse facility on that ...

to honor her and another federal judge.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keep, Judith Nelson 1944 births 2004 deaths Assistant United States Attorneys Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California Scripps College alumni United States district court judges appointed by Jimmy Carter 20th-century American judges University of San Diego School of Law alumni 20th-century American women judges