Landya Marie Boyer McCafferty (born September 19, 1962) is an American attorney and jurist serving as the chief judge of the

United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire The United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire (in case citations, D.N.H.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises the state of New Hampshire. The Warren B. Rudman U.S. Courthouse for the New Hampshir ...

. She is the first woman to serve as a federal judge of the District Court of New Hampshire.

Early life and education

McCafferty was born Landya Marie Boyer in 1962, 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, ...

She graduated from the

Spartanburg Day School Spartanburg Day School is an independent, college preparatory 2K-12 school, located in unincorporated Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States, with a Spartanburg post office address, in the Greenville-Spartanburg area. It consists of a ...

in 1980 as the third female in school history to be elected student body president. She received an

Artium Baccalaureus 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 1984, ''cum laude'', from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. 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 1991 from

Northeastern University School of Law Northeastern University School of Law (NUSL) is the law school of Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded as an evening program to meet the needs of its local community, NUSL is nationally recognized for its cooperative legal ed ...

Career

She worked as 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

Norman H. Stahl Norman H. Stahl (January 30, 1931 – April 8, 2023) was an American lawyer who served as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. He was formerly a United States district judge of the United Sta ...

, both at the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire and at the

United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (in case citations, 1st Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Maine * District of Massachusetts * ...

, following his elevation to that court. From 1993 to 1994, she served as an associate at the law firm of McLane, Graf, Raulerson & Middleton, P.A. From 1994 to 1995, she served as a law clerk to Judge

A. David Mazzone A. David Mazzone (June 3, 1928 – October 25, 2004) served for twenty-six years as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. "He will forever be remembered by the people of Massachuset ...

of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. She served as a staff attorney for the New Hampshire Public Defender Program from 1995 to 2003. She served as Disciplinary Counsel for the New Hampshire Attorney Discipline Office from 2003 to 2010. In 2010, she was selected as a

United States magistrate judge 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 District of New Hampshire.

Federal judicial service

On May 23, 2013, President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

nominated McCafferty to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire, to the seat vacated by Judge Steven J. McAuliffe, who assumed

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

on April 1, 2013. On December 12, 2013, 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 ...

invoked cloture on her nomination by a 58–40 vote. McCafferty's nomination was confirmed later that day by a 79–19 vote. McCafferty is the first woman to serve as a district judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire. She received her judicial commission on December 17, 2013. She became Chief Judge on November 1, 2018. She is the first woman to serve as Chief Judge of the District of New Hampshire.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McCafferty, Landya Boyer 1962 births Living people 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American women lawyers 21st-century American judges 21st-century American women judges 21st-century American lawyers 21st-century American women lawyers Harvard University alumni Judges of the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire Lawyers from Washington, D.C. New Hampshire lawyers Northeastern University School of Law alumni Public defenders United States district court judges appointed by Barack Obama United States magistrate judges