Anthony Joseph Scirica is a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts for the following districts:* District of Delaware* District of New Jersey...

. Born in 1940 in Norristown, Pennsylvania

Norristown, Pennsylvania

Norristown is a municipality in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, northwest of the city limits of Philadelphia, on the Schuylkill River. The population was 34,324 as of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Montgomery County...

, Chief Judge Scirica graduated from Wesleyan University

Wesleyan University

Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...

 in 1962 and received his J.D.

Juris Doctor

Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...

 from University of Michigan Law School

University of Michigan Law School

The University of Michigan Law School is the law school of the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Founded in 1859, the school has an enrollment of about 1,200 students, most of whom are seeking Juris Doctor or Master of Laws degrees, although the school also offers a Doctor of Juridical...

 in 1965. Prior to his appointment to the federal bench in 1984, he practiced law in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania

Montgomery County, Pennsylvania

Montgomery County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of 2010, the population was 799,874, making it the third most populous county in Pennsylvania . The county seat is Norristown.The county was created on September 10, 1784, out of land originally part...

, serving as an assistant district attorney

District attorney

In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...

, and was elected to the Court of Common Pleas

Pennsylvania Courts of Common Pleas

The Pennsylvania Courts of Common Pleas are the trial courts of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania .The Courts of Common Pleas are the trial courts of general jurisdiction in the state....

. Scirica also served as a State Representative in the Pennsylvania General Assembly

Pennsylvania General Assembly

The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times , the legislature was known as the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly. Since the Constitution of 1776, written by...

 from 1971 to 1979. Scirica was a Republican representing parts of Montgomery County. In 1984 he was appointed to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania is one of the original 13 federal judiciary districts created by the Judiciary Act of 1789...

. He was elevated to the Court of Appeals in 1987. He became Chief Judge in 2003 when then-Chief Judge Edward Roy Becker

Edward Roy Becker

For the Distinguished Service Cross recipient, see Edward Becker .Edward Roy Becker was a United States federal judge on the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit....

 assumed senior status

Senior status

Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges, and judges in some state court systems. After federal judges have reached a certain combination of age and years of service on the federal courts, they are allowed to assume senior status...

.

In 2008, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. of the U.S. Supreme Court named Judge Scirica to be chairman of the executive committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States.

Scirica wrote a dissent

Dissenting opinion

A dissenting opinion is an opinion in a legal case written by one or more judges expressing disagreement with the majority opinion of the court which gives rise to its judgment....

 in the Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC

Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC

Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC, was a series of cases heard and adjudicated by the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals from 2003 to 2010. A civilian activist group, Prometheus Radio Project, challenged new media ownership rules put forth by the Federal Communications Commission during its 2002...

case. He authored the unanimous opinion in the Winer Family Trust v. Queen private securities fraud class action.

His former law clerks include Gregory G. Garre

Gregory G. Garre

Gregory G. Garre is a former United States Solicitor General serving between June 19, 2008 to January 20, 2009. He spent his early life in his hometown of Barrington, Illinois. He received his undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College in 1987 and his law degree from George Washington University...

, a former-United States Solicitor General, and Magistrate Judge Timothy Rice.