Confirmation of Robert Stewart Ballou

Floor Speech

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Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, today, the Senate voted to confirm Judge Robert Ballou to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia.

Born in Roanoke, VA, Judge Ballou received both his bachelor's degree and J.D. from the University of Virginia. After clerking for Judge Peter H. Beer on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Judge Ballou began his legal career at Christian, Barton, Epps, Brent & Chappell as an associate, where he worked on a variety of matters, including insurance defense, products liability, and traffic and misdemeanor offenses. He then went on to work for Johnson, Ayers & Matthews, PLC as an associate, where he tried more than 50 cases to verdict before a jury, including matters involving personal injury, products liability, and construction defects. In 2011, Judge Ballou was appointed to serve as a U.S. magistrate judge for the same district to which he is now nominated. As a magistrate, he has presided over approximately 300 cases.

The American Bar Association rated Judge Ballou unanimously ``well qualified,'' and he has the strong support of Senators Warner and Kaine. Judge Ballou's deep ties to the Virginia legal community, combined with his significant courtroom experience, will make him an excellent addition to the Federal district court bench.

I was pleased to support his nomination.

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