Rebecca Beach Smith (born 1949) is a senior

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...

of the

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (in case citations, E.D. Va.) is one of two United States district courts serving the Commonwealth of Virginia. It has jurisdiction over the Northern Virginia, Hampton ...

and a civic leader. Among her many decisions is the 2011 ruling that decided the title to and restrictions upon artifacts salvaged from the wreck of the .

Early life, education

Smith was born in Hopewell,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. She 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 year ...

degree from the

College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William I ...

in 1971, and then received a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...

degree from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

in 1973. After she worked as a planning analyst for Enviro-Med, Inc. (1973-1974) and research associate at the National Academy of Sciences (1974-1977), Smith attended law school and received her Juris Doctor from

William & Mary Law School The William & Mary Law School, known historically as the Marshall-Wythe School of Law, is the professional graduate law school of the College of William & Mary. Located in Williamsburg, Virginia, the school is the oldest extant law school in th ...

in 1979. She was executive editor of the ''William and Mary Law Review'', graduated first in her law school class and was awarded membership in the

Order of the Coif The Order of the Coif is an honor society for United States law school graduates. The name is a reference to the ancient English order of advocates, the serjeants-at-law, whose courtroom attire included a coif—a white lawn or silk skullcap, whi ...

.'August 12, 2011 article on The College of William and Mary web site'
retrieved December 5, 2011. In 1997, Judge Smith received The College of William and Mary Alumni Medallion, the highest award the William and Mary Alumni Association can bestow on a graduate of the College of William and Mary.

Professional career

After earning her M.A. degree, Smith was a planning analyst for Enviro-Med, Inc. in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, and

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 ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

from 1973 to 1974. She then was a research associate for the National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine in Washington, D.C. from 1974 to 1977. After she graduated from law school, Smith served as a law clerk in private practice in

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

. She then served as a law clerk for Judge Joseph Calvitt Clarke Jr. of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia from 1979 to 1980. She was again in the private practice of law at a large firm in Norfolk from 1980 to 1985. Before being appointed a federal district judge, she was a

United States Magistrate In United States federal courts, magistrate judges are judges appointed to assist U.S. district court judges in the performance of their duties. Magistrate judges generally oversee first appearances of criminal defendants, set bail, and conduct ...

for the Eastern District of Virginia from 1985 to 1989.

Federal judicial service

On August 4, 1989, President George H. W. Bush nominated Smith for appointment as a United States District Judge of the

to a seat vacated by Judge D. Dortch Warriner. 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 ...

confirmed Smith's appointment on October 24, 1989, and she received her commission on October 25, 1989. She was the first female federal judge in Virginia. Smith served as Chief Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia and from December 4, 2011 until December 4, 2018. Smith assumed

senior status Senior status is a form of semi- retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of service as a federal judge must be at leas ...

on August 1, 2019.

Titanic artifacts decision

Premier Exhibitions Inc., the parent company of RMS Titanic Inc., the company that salvaged the artifacts from the wrecked ship RMS ''Titanic'' on the ocean floor, asked Judge Smith to award it sole title to the artifacts with covenants to preserve them forever. On August 15, 2011, Judge Smith granted title to thousands of artifacts from the Titanic to RMS Titanic Inc., subject to a detailed list of conditions concerning preservation of the items.'Norfolk ''Virginian-Pilot'' article, August 16, 2011, on court's final artifacts decision'
retrieved December 5, 2011. The artifacts can be sold only to a company that would abide by the lengthy list of conditions and restrictions. RMS Titanic Inc., can profit from the artifacts through exhibiting them.

Viagra patent decision

Just a few days before her decision in the Titanic artifacts case, Judge Smith upheld the validity of Pfizer Inc.'s

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A ...

for the erectile dysfunction pill

Viagra Sildenafil, sold under the brand name Viagra, among others, is a medication used to treat erectile dysfunction and pulmonary arterial hypertension. It is unclear if it is effective for treating sexual dysfunction in women. It is taken by ...

.'Bloomberg News August 15, 2011 article on Viagra patent case decision'
retrieved December 5, 2011. The decision blocked Israeli firm Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., a manufacturer of

generic drugs A generic drug is a pharmaceutical drug that contains the same chemical substance as a drug that was originally protected by chemical patents. Generic drugs are allowed for sale after the patents on the original drugs expire. Because the active c ...

, from marketing a generic version until 2019. Teva had argued that the Pfizer patent was invalid and unenforceable. Among reasons for her decision, Judge Smith found there was no convincing evidence to support Teva's claim that Pfizer intentionally withheld documents from the

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark registration authority for the United States. The USPTO's headquarters are in Alexa ...

Civic work

In addition to her professional work, Judge Smith has devoted much time to work with civic groups, professional associations, charities and educational institutions, including a term as President of the Alumni Association of The College of William and Mary. Judge Smith was a founding member of the I'Anson - Hoffman American Inn of Court, which "was established by charter on May 1, 1987, in Norfolk, Virginia, as part of a nationwide movement to emulate the British Inns of Court, for the purpose of promoting the goals of excellence, civility, professionalism and ethics in the legal profession" and was president of the organization between 1989 and 1991. She was a member of the Federal Judges Association's board of directors and the

United States Judicial Conference 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 ...

Committee on Technology. She also was the president of the

Norfolk Academy Norfolk Academy (NA) is an independent co-educational day school in Norfolk, Virginia. Chartered in 1728, it is the oldest private school in Virginia and the eighth oldest school in the United States. In 1966, Norfolk Academy merged with Country D ...

Board of Trustees between 2002 and 2005 and a trustee of the school, a private elementary and secondary school in Norfolk, Virginia, for eighteen years.The WMU source states simply that Judge Smith was president of the Norfolk Academy but the Norfolk Academy web site lists her as President of the Board of Trustees between 2002 and 2005; this is the only "president" of the institution or an administrative body of the school which is shown on the web sit
'Norfolk Academy web site, Board of Trustees'
retrieved December 7, 2011. United States Chief Justice

John Roberts John Glover Roberts Jr. (born January 27, 1955) is an American lawyer and jurist who has served as the 17th chief justice of the United States since 2005. Roberts has authored the majority opinion in several landmark cases, including '' Nat ...

appointed Smith to the United States Judicial Conference Codes of Conduct Committee, and she was serving in this capacity in 2011.

References

External links

*
'Bloomberg News August 15, 2011 article on Viagra patent case decision'
retrieved December 5, 2011.
'The I'Anson-Hoffman American Inn of Court'
retrieved December 7, 2011.
'Norfolk ''Virginian-Pilot'' article, August 16, 2011, on court's final artifacts decision'
retrieved December 5, 2011.

retrieved December 5, 2011. * ttp://www.norfolkacademy.org/podium/default.aspx?t=42543 'Norfolk Academy web site, Board of Trustees' retrieved December 7, 2011.
'August 12, 2011 article on The College of William and Mary web site'
retrieved December 5, 2011.
'The William and Mary Alumni Association web site'
retrieved December 7, 2011. {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Rebecca Beach 1949 births Living people 20th-century American judges 20th-century American women judges 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American women lawyers 21st-century American judges 21st-century American women judges College of William & Mary alumni Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia People from Hopewell, Virginia People from Norfolk, Virginia United States district court judges appointed by George H. W. Bush United States magistrate judges University of Virginia alumni Virginia lawyers William & Mary Law School alumni