Bruce Marshall Selya
Encyclopedia
Bruce Marshall Selya is a senior federal judge
on the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
and chief judge of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review
who is known for his conservative opinions and distinctive writing style.
degree from Harvard University
in 1955. He received his LL.B. from Harvard Law School
in 1958.
From 1958-1960, Selya served as a law clerk
to Edward W. Day, who was then Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island. He then entered into the private practice of law in Providence, Rhode Island
. From 1965-1972, he also served as a probate judge in Lincoln, Rhode Island
.
In 1982, Selya was nominated to be a judge on the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island
, filling a seat formerly held by Judge Raymond J. Pettine. President Reagan elevated Judge Selya to a newly-created seat on the First Circuit in 1986.
In 2000, Chief Justice William Rehnquist
appointed Selya to the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation
, a position Selya held until 2004. In 2005, Chief Justice Rehnquist appointed Selya to the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review
, and in 2008 Selya was appointed by United States Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts to the chief judgeship of the Court of Review. As the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court
is not an adversarial court and (with few exceptions) only hears argument from the United States government, the Court of Review solely hears appeals from that court when the government is denied a warrant for wiretap surveillance of suspected terrorists or spies.http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2008/04/14/federal_appeals_judge_in_boston_named_top_judge_of_wiretap_court
Judge Selya assumed senior status
at the end of 2006.http://www.uscourts.gov/cfapps/webnovada/CF_FB_301/index.cfm?fuseaction=Reports.ViewFuture Then Senator Lincoln Chafee
recommended that former Rhode Island Supreme Court
Justice Robert G. Flanders, Jr.
be nominated to replace Selya. President George W. Bush
interviewed Flanders, United States District Judge William E. Smith, and Rhode Island Supreme Court Justice Paul A. Suttell for the position, before selecting Judge Smith as the nominee. Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse
asserted that, due to the President's failure to work with Whitehouse and fellow Democratic senator Jack Reed in selecting a consensus candidate, the vacancy left by Selya's departure would not be filled during Bush's tenure.
Selya aspires toward readability by using uncommon words in contexts that make the words' meanings clear; and apart from his vocabulary, Selya's prose is notable for its readability and its avoidance of clotted or formulaic legal rhetoric. It is clear at least that Selya is widely-read by his colleagues. Over the years 1998-2000, Selya numbered as the fourth most cited federal judge outside of the Supreme Court, as measured by the number of citations to his opinions from outside of his own circuit. Occupying the three positions above Selya were Judges Richard Posner
, Frank Easterbrook, and Sandra Lynch.
as a notable example of good judicial writing. A representative sampling of recent opinions includes Aguilar v. ICE, 510 F.3d 1 (1st Cir. 2007) (immigration law and federal jurisdiction)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071819; Havlik v. Johnson & Wales University, 509 F.3d 25 (1st Cir. 2007) (education law)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071879; Alexander v. Brigham & Women's Physicians Org., 513 F.3d 37 (1st Cir. 2008) (employee benefits)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071443; United States v. Martin, 520 F.3d 87 (1st Cir. 2008) (federal sentencing guidelines)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=061983; Connectu LLC v. Zuckerberg, 522 F.3d 82 (1st Cir. 2008) (civil procedure)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071796; Rio Mar Assocs., LP, SE v. UHS of Puerto Rico, Inc., 522 F.3d 159 (1st Cir. 2008) (tort law)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071868; and Morales v. Sociedad Espanola de Auxilio Mutuo y Benificencia, 2008 U.S. App. 2380 (administrative and medical law)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071951.
Federal judge
Federal judges are judges appointed by a federal level of government as opposed to the state / provincial / local level.-Brazil:In Brazil, federal judges of first instance are chosen exclusively by public contest...
on the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Maine* District of Massachusetts...
and chief judge of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review
United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review
The United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review is a U.S. federal court authorized under and established by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978...
who is known for his conservative opinions and distinctive writing style.
Career
Judge Selya received an A.B.Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1955. He received his LL.B. from Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
in 1958.
From 1958-1960, Selya served as a law clerk
Law clerk
A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person who provides assistance to a judge in researching issues before the court and in writing opinions. Law clerks are not court clerks or courtroom deputies, who are administrative staff for the court. Most law clerks are recent law school graduates who...
to Edward W. Day, who was then Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island. He then entered into the private practice of law in Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
. From 1965-1972, he also served as a probate judge in Lincoln, Rhode Island
Lincoln, Rhode Island
Lincoln is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 21,105 at the 2010 census. Lincoln is located in northeastern Rhode Island, north of Providence....
.
In 1982, Selya was nominated to be a judge on the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island
United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island
The United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Rhode Island. The District Court was created in 1790 when Rhode Island ratified the Constitution...
, filling a seat formerly held by Judge Raymond J. Pettine. President Reagan elevated Judge Selya to a newly-created seat on the First Circuit in 1986.
In 2000, Chief Justice William Rehnquist
William Rehnquist
William Hubbs Rehnquist was an American lawyer, jurist, and political figure who served as an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States and later as the 16th Chief Justice of the United States...
appointed Selya to the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation
Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation
The United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation is a special body within the United States federal court system which manages multidistrict litigation. It was established by Congress in 1968 under 28 U.S.C...
, a position Selya held until 2004. In 2005, Chief Justice Rehnquist appointed Selya to the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review
United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review
The United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review is a U.S. federal court authorized under and established by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978...
, and in 2008 Selya was appointed by United States Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts to the chief judgeship of the Court of Review. As the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court
United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court
The United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court is a U.S. federal court authorized under , . It was established by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 . The FISC oversees requests for surveillance warrants against suspected foreign intelligence agents inside the United...
is not an adversarial court and (with few exceptions) only hears argument from the United States government, the Court of Review solely hears appeals from that court when the government is denied a warrant for wiretap surveillance of suspected terrorists or spies.http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2008/04/14/federal_appeals_judge_in_boston_named_top_judge_of_wiretap_court
Judge Selya 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...
at the end of 2006.http://www.uscourts.gov/cfapps/webnovada/CF_FB_301/index.cfm?fuseaction=Reports.ViewFuture Then Senator Lincoln Chafee
Lincoln Chafee
Lincoln Davenport Chafee is an American politician who has been the 74th Governor of Rhode Island since January 2011. Prior to his election as governor, Chafee served in the United States Senate as a Republican from 1999 until losing his Senate re-election bid in 2006 to Democrat Sheldon...
recommended that former Rhode Island Supreme Court
Rhode Island Supreme Court
The Rhode Island Supreme Court, founded in 1747, is the court of last resort in the U.S. State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. The Court consists of a chief justice and four associate justices. The current Justices of the Rhode Island Supreme Court are:*Chief Justice Paul A...
Justice Robert G. Flanders, Jr.
Robert G. Flanders, Jr.
Robert G. Flanders, Jr. is an American attorney who served as an Associate Justice on the Rhode Island Supreme Court from 1996 to 2004. He earn his bachelor's degree at Brown University in 1971 and his law degree at Harvard Law School in 1974. He served as Chairman of the Rhode Island Board of...
be nominated to replace Selya. President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
interviewed Flanders, United States District Judge William E. Smith, and Rhode Island Supreme Court Justice Paul A. Suttell for the position, before selecting Judge Smith as the nominee. Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse
Sheldon Whitehouse
Sheldon Whitehouse is the junior U.S. Senator from Rhode Island, serving since 2007. He is a member of the Democratic Party...
asserted that, due to the President's failure to work with Whitehouse and fellow Democratic senator Jack Reed in selecting a consensus candidate, the vacancy left by Selya's departure would not be filled during Bush's tenure.
Writing Style
As a private practitioner, Selya was often lulled to sleep by the legalese and boilerplate rhetoric in judicial opinions, a matter he has sought to remedy since ascending to the bench: "I made a commitment to myself that I would attempt to prove that sound jurisprudence and interesting prose are not mutually exclusive." Selya disclaims "lexiphanicism for its own sake." For Selya, precision is a precondition for his use of a word, and "[i]f it does not fit, I won't submit."Selya aspires toward readability by using uncommon words in contexts that make the words' meanings clear; and apart from his vocabulary, Selya's prose is notable for its readability and its avoidance of clotted or formulaic legal rhetoric. It is clear at least that Selya is widely-read by his colleagues. Over the years 1998-2000, Selya numbered as the fourth most cited federal judge outside of the Supreme Court, as measured by the number of citations to his opinions from outside of his own circuit. Occupying the three positions above Selya were Judges Richard Posner
Richard Posner
Richard Allen Posner is an American jurist, legal theorist, and economist who is currently a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago and a Senior Lecturer at the University of Chicago Law School...
, Frank Easterbrook, and Sandra Lynch.
Notable Opinions
One of Selya's recent opinions, Ungar v. PLO, has been singled out by The Green BagThe Green Bag
The Green Bag: An Entertaining Journal of Law is a legal journal supported in part by George Mason University School of Law and is dedicated to publishing "good writing" about the law. Founded in 1997 by three former-classmates of the University of Chicago Law School , The Green Bag is published...
as a notable example of good judicial writing. A representative sampling of recent opinions includes Aguilar v. ICE, 510 F.3d 1 (1st Cir. 2007) (immigration law and federal jurisdiction)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071819; Havlik v. Johnson & Wales University, 509 F.3d 25 (1st Cir. 2007) (education law)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071879; Alexander v. Brigham & Women's Physicians Org., 513 F.3d 37 (1st Cir. 2008) (employee benefits)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071443; United States v. Martin, 520 F.3d 87 (1st Cir. 2008) (federal sentencing guidelines)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=061983; Connectu LLC v. Zuckerberg, 522 F.3d 82 (1st Cir. 2008) (civil procedure)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071796; Rio Mar Assocs., LP, SE v. UHS of Puerto Rico, Inc., 522 F.3d 159 (1st Cir. 2008) (tort law)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071868; and Morales v. Sociedad Espanola de Auxilio Mutuo y Benificencia, 2008 U.S. App. 2380 (administrative and medical law)http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=1st&navby=case&no=071951.