President Obama Nominates Two to Serve on the US District Court

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Obama nominated Judge John Thomas Fowlkes, Jr. and Mr. Kevin McNulty to serve on the United States District Court.

“I am pleased to nominate these distinguished individuals to serve on the United States District Court bench,” said President Obama.  “I am confident they will serve the American people with integrity and a steadfast commitment to justice.”

Judge John Thomas Fowlkes, Jr.:  Nominee for the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee
Judge John Thomas Fowlkes, Jr. has been a judge of the Shelby County Criminal Court since 2007, where he presides over felony and misdemeanor criminal matters.  From 2002 to 2007, Judge Fowlkes was the Chief Administrative Officer for the Shelby County Government.  Previously, Judge Fowlkes served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Western District of Tennessee from 1989 to 2002 and an Assistant District Attorney General in the Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office from 1979 to 1989.  He began his legal career as an Assistant Public Defender in the Shelby County Public Defender’s Office in Memphis, Tennessee.  Judge Fowlkes received his J.D. in 1977 from the University of Denver School of Law and his B.A. in 1975 from Valparaiso University.

Kevin McNulty:  Nominee for the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey
Kevin McNulty is a Director at the Newark law firm of Gibbons P.C., where he chairs the firm’s appellate practice and is a member of the business & commercial litigation department.  Prior to joining the firm in 1998, McNulty served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the District of New Jersey for over a decade.  During that time, he served as Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division from 1992 to 1995 and Chief of the Appeals Division from 1995 to 1998.  Before joining the United States Attorney’s Office, McNulty was an associate at the law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP for three years.  He began his legal career as a law clerk to the Honorable Fredrick B. Lacey of the United States District Court in New Jersey.  McNulty received his J.D. in 1983 from New York University School of Law and his B.A. in 1976 from Yale University.