Vanessa Lynne Bryant
Encyclopedia
Vanessa Lynne Bryant is a district judge for the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
. She joined the court in 2007 after being nominated by President George W. Bush
.
with her bachelor's degree in 1975 and later from University of Connecticut School of Law
with a Juris Doctor
de gree in 1978.
and to Shawmut Bank
from 1989 to 1990. She was the vice president and general counsel to the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority from 1990 to 1992, and in 1991 joined the Connecticut board of pardons, which she stayed on until 1998. She was counsel to, and later a partner of, the New York based law firm of Hawkins, Delafield and Wood from 1992 to 1998 and the chapter 13 bankruptcy trustee for the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Connecticut, Bridgeport division f rom 1996 until she was appointed a Connecticut Superior Court Judge on September 1, 1998. She was also presiding judge of the New Britain Judicial District from 2002 to 2004, and then the Hartford Judicial District from 2006 until her appointment as a federal judge in 2007.
In her capacity as a Superior Court Judge she served as Presiding Judge of the Civil Division of the New Britain Judicial District from 2002 to 2003, Administrative Judge for the Judicial District of Litchfield from 2003 to 2005 and Presiding Judge for the Civil Division of the Judicial District of Hartford from 2006 until her appointment to the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. Judge Bryant was the 38th person appointed a District Judge in Connecticut and the first African American woman appointed a federal judge in New England.
. Bryant was confirmed by the Senate
on March 28, 2007 on a Senate vote and received her commission on April 2, 2007.
United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
The United States District Court for the District of Connecticut is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Connecticut. The court has offices in Bridgeport, Hartford and New Haven. Appeals from the court are heard by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit...
. She joined the court in 2007 after being nominated by 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....
.
Early life and education
She was born in Queens, New York, went to Marina High School in Huntington Beach, and graduated from Howard UniversityHoward University
Howard University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...
with her bachelor's degree in 1975 and later from University of Connecticut School of Law
University of Connecticut School of Law
The University of Connecticut School of Law is the only public law school in Connecticut and one of only four in New England. The school was recently ranked forty-sixth out of the 190 American Bar Association-accredited law schools in the United States and is considered a Tier 1 school by U.S...
with a Juris Doctor
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...
de gree in 1978.
Legal career
Bryant was in private practice at Day, Berry and Howard (presently Day, Pitney) in Hartford, Connecticut from 1978-1981. During the period from 1981 to 1989 she was a counsel to Aetna Life & Casualty CompanyAetna
Aetna, Inc. is an American health insurance company, providing a range of traditional and consumer directed health care insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmaceutical, dental, behavioral health, group life, long-term care, and disability plans, and medical management...
and to Shawmut Bank
FleetBoston Financial
FleetBoston Financial was a Boston, Massachusetts–based bank created in 1999 by the merger of Fleet Financial Group and BankBoston. In 2004 it merged with Bank of America; all of its banks and branches were given the Bank of America logo.-History:...
from 1989 to 1990. She was the vice president and general counsel to the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority from 1990 to 1992, and in 1991 joined the Connecticut board of pardons, which she stayed on until 1998. She was counsel to, and later a partner of, the New York based law firm of Hawkins, Delafield and Wood from 1992 to 1998 and the chapter 13 bankruptcy trustee for the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Connecticut, Bridgeport division f rom 1996 until she was appointed a Connecticut Superior Court Judge on September 1, 1998. She was also presiding judge of the New Britain Judicial District from 2002 to 2004, and then the Hartford Judicial District from 2006 until her appointment as a federal judge in 2007.
In her capacity as a Superior Court Judge she served as Presiding Judge of the Civil Division of the New Britain Judicial District from 2002 to 2003, Administrative Judge for the Judicial District of Litchfield from 2003 to 2005 and Presiding Judge for the Civil Division of the Judicial District of Hartford from 2006 until her appointment to the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. Judge Bryant was the 38th person appointed a District Judge in Connecticut and the first African American woman appointed a federal judge in New England.
Federal Judicial Career
In 2007, Bryant was nominated to the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut by President George W. Bush on January 9, 2007 to a seat vacated by Dominic J. SquatritoDominic J. Squatrito
Dominic J. Squatrito is a United States federal judge.Born in Hartford, Connecticut, Squatrito received a B.A. from Wesleyan University in 1961 and an LL.B. from Yale Law School in 1965. He was a Fulbright scholar to the University of Florence, Florence, Italy in 1962...
. Bryant was confirmed by the Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
on March 28, 2007 on a Senate vote and received her commission on April 2, 2007.