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Stephen F. Williams

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Stephen F. Williams
Image of Stephen F. Williams

Nonpartisan

Prior offices
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit

Education

Bachelor's

Yale University, 1958

Law

Harvard Law, 1961

Personal
Birthplace
New York, N.Y.
Contact

Official website

Stephen Fain Williams was an Article III federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. He joined the court in 1986 after being nominated by President Ronald Reagan (R). Williams assumed senior status on September 30, 2001. His service ended on August 7, 2020, when he died due to complications from the coronavirus.[1][2]

Williams died on August 7, 2020, due to complications related to coronavirus infection.[3]


Early life and education

Williams graduated from Yale University with his B.A. in 1958 and later from Harvard Law School with his J.D. in 1961.[1]

Military service

Williams served as Private E-2 in the United States Army Reserve from 1961 to 1962.[1]

Professional career

  • 1983-1984: Visiting professor of energy law, Southern Methodist University School of Law
  • 1979-1980: Visiting professor and fellow in law and economics, University of Chicago
  • 1975-1976: Visiting professor, University of California-Los Angeles School of Law
  • 1969-1986: Faculty member, University of Colorado School of Law
1976-1986: Professor of law
1969-1976: Associate professor of law

Judicial career

On the recommendation of the at-large Congressional delegation for the District of Columbia, Williams was nominated to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit by President Ronald Reagan (R) on February 19, 1986, to a seat vacated by Malcolm Wilkey. Wilkey assumed senior status at that time. Williams was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on June 13, 1986, on a Senate vote and received commission on June 16, 1986. Williams assumed senior status on September 30, 2008. His service ended on August 7, 2020, when he died due to complications from the coronavirus.[1][2]

Noteworthy cases

D.C. Circuit cannot rule on filibuster lawsuit due to jurisdictional issue (2014)

In April 2014, a three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit, comprised of Judges Williams, Karen Henderson and Arthur Randolph, blocked a lawsuit filed by the advocacy group Common Cause concerning Senate filibuster rules invoked as to the DREAM and DISCLOSE bills. The decision, written by Judge Randolph, noted that the advocacy group failed to sue the proper party, namely, the Senate itself, as it was the cause of the alleged injury in question. Judge Randolph further stated that the Senate was an "absent third party," and that the D.C. Circuit therefore lacked jurisdiction to rule on the case.

Articles:

Judge upholds labels for meat products (2014)

A federal court has upheld a law requiring the meat industry to label certain cuts to include where the animal was born, lived its life and ultimately was slaughtered.

Meat producers said that requiring labels on meat is a violation of their First Amendment right to free speech because it would force the producer to provide information about their product. That information would be of little to no value to the consumer, either. Producers also argued that the labels go beyond Congressional intent.

Judge Stephen F. Williams, writing for a panel of the Federal Circuit, said that the labels allow consumers to choose meats from the United States, where there are strict regulations about meat production, rather than from foreign countries that do not have such strict rules. He said the labeling measure allows consumers to use “patriotic or protectionist criteria in the choice of meat.”[4] The goals being met with the labels outweigh the slight infringement on meat producers’ free speech rights.

Articles:

Noteworthy events

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Coronavirus pandemic
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Died as a result of coronavirus on August 7, 2020

See also: Government official, politician, and candidate deaths, diagnoses, and quarantines due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020-2021

Williams died on August 7, 2020, due to complications related to coronavirus infection.[5]


See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Federal Judicial Center, "Biography of Stephen Fain Williams," accessed January 30, 2019
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Washington Post, "Stephen F. Williams, longtime federal appeals judge in D.C., dies of coronavirus at 83," August 8, 2020
  3. ↑ The Washington Post, "Stephen F. Williams, longtime federal appeals judge in D.C., dies of coronavirus at 83," August 7, 2020
  4. ↑ FOX News, “Appeals court rules in favor of meat labels,” March 28, 2014
  5. ↑ The Washington Post, "Stephen F. Williams, longtime federal appeals judge in D.C., dies of coronavirus at 83," August 7, 2020
Political offices
Preceded by:
Malcolm Wilkey 		Circuit Court of Appeals for D.C.
1986–2008 		Succeeded by:
Janice Brown




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