Executive Session

Floor Speech

EXECUTIVE SESSION -- (Senate - April 10, 2008)

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I am grateful to the distinguished chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee for moving this nomination of Catharina Haynes to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and I am pleased she has been unanimously confirmed today by a voice vote.

Judge Haynes is actually a former State district court judge. I am proud to call her now Judge Haynes as a confirmed United States circuit court judge.

I am proud to concur with the American Bar Association's unanimous opinion that Ms. Haynes is well qualified for a seat on the Federal appellate bench. Her record as both a State judge and a member of the civil bar amply demonstrates the legal acumen, the commitment to justice, and the dedication to public service required for those nominated to serve on our Nation's appellate courts.

It is truly a pleasure to recommend confirmation of a Texas lawyer with a career-long record of dedication to public service and equality before the law. Ms. Haynes has served as a volunteer for pro bono legal aid clinics, providing legal assistance to people who otherwise would be unable to afford to have a will probated or resolve family law issues. Ms. Haynes helped develop a brochure for pro se litigants, opening the doors of justice in what can be a daunting and intimidating system for disadvantaged litigants.

This pattern of helping the less fortunate navigate the legal system bespeaks a commitment to the ideal of equal justice for all. This is but one aspect of Ms. Haynes's service to her community.

Since 2005, Ms. Haynes has been a director of the Vickery Meadow Learning Center, a nonprofit organization that promotes literacy among the residents of a low-income Dallas neighborhood. Ms. Haynes teaches pre-GED classes at the Learning Center. Ms. Haynes's direct involvement her community demonstrates that her dedication to the rule of law is matched by her passion for public service.

Ms. Haynes demonstrated this commitment to public service in 1998, when she gave up a prestigious and lucrative partnership at the Baker Botts law firm to take the bench as a State district court judge on the 191st District Court in Dallas.

As a former district court and appellate judge, I can attest that the district judge's experience seeing actual litigants and the real-world consequences of their legal disputes is invaluable for later service on the appellate bench.

The fundamentals of judging--analyzing the arguments presented to the court in light of the facts and the law--carry over from the trial court to the appellate level. And Ms. Haynes's experience as a trial court judge will undoubtedly remind her each day that the consequences of a judge's decisions always have a human face.

As a State judge, Ms. Haynes gained deep experience in many areas of substantive law including commercial litigation, personal injury, employment, insurance bad faith litigation, and intellectual property. State court judges interpret and apply Federal statutory and constitutional law, which are, of course, the supreme law of the land, binding on judges in every State. In presiding over nearly 300 trials, Judge Haynes distinguished herself for her work ethic and commitment to the rule of law.

Ms. Haynes's intellect and diligence have been evident throughout her legal career, starting with her extraordinary academic record.

After graduating first in her class from Florida Institute of Technology at the age of 19, Judge Haynes went on to graduate, with distinction, second in her class at Emory University School of Law at the age of 22. In her 21-year legal career, she has been involved in a wide variety of complex civil cases in both State and Federal courts.

Ms. Haynes's professional excellence has been repeatedly recognized and honored by her peers in the legal community. Her many awards include the State Bar of Texas Presidential Commendation, the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers Foundation Award of Excellence, and the Dallas Women Lawyers Association Louise B. Raggio Award, which is awarded annually to a Dallas-area attorney who has worked to advance women in the legal profession, shown outstanding legal proficiency and the highest level of ethics, and made a significant contribution to the profession.

It is fitting that Ms. Haynes has received awards for her contributions to the legal profession, given that she has dedicated significant energy to promoting the professionalism and ethics that are central to the rule of law. She has written and spoken extensively on issues of civil trial litigation, professionalism, and ethics.

Among her many professional leadership positions, she has served on the board of the Dallas Bar Association and the Professional Ethics Committee of the State Bar of Texas. Her life's work speaks to a belief in the high calling of a career in law and a steadfast and accomplished pursuit of the profession's highest ideals.

I am pleased that the Judiciary Committee recently approved Ms. Haynes' nomination and the Senate just confirmed her.

The Federal bench needs more men and women of her caliber, drawn from among the best of the civil bar.

Mr. President, the People for the American Way, a liberal advocacy group, sent a letter to the Judiciary Committee last week urging the committee not to proceed with this nomination. To the credit of Chairman Leahy and my Democratic colleagues, they rejected this baseless and unfair attack.

The lack of any substantial reason to deny this nomination is clear when we look at the pretense offered by People for the American Way for opposing Ms. Haynes. The letter claims that Ms. Haynes has no ``record of commitment to civil rights progress in this country.''

First of all, I do not know exactly what that means. I believe that this group is deliberately creating a vague standard that they can invoke to reject any nominee. I think that it is clear that there is nothing in Ms. Haynes' background that they can reasonably complain about with any specificity, so they fall back on vagueness.

I don't know what this group means by a ``record of commitment to civil rights,'' so I can't respond to that other than by directing my colleagues to Ms. Haynes actual record--a record that was discussed at length in Ms. Haynes' hearing and that this letter ignores completely.

Ms. Haynes has served as a volunteer for pro bono legal aid clinics, volunteering her time to protect the legal rights of those who can't afford a lawyer.

Ms. Haynes helped write a brochure for pro se litigants, giving disadvantaged litigants the tools they need to vindicate their rights in courts of law.

Ms. Haynes serves as a director of the Vickery Meadow Learning Center, a nonprofit organization that promotes literacy among the disadvantaged. Ms. Haynes teaches pre-GED classes at the center, aiding the less fortunate along the path to literacy, education, and a fuller civic life.

By any fair reading, Ms. Haynes has an exemplary record of commitment to the high ideals of equal opportunity and equal justice before the law--ideals that I believe are at the core of civil rights.

I yield the floor.

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