Whitney Hermandorfer

Whitney Downs Hermandorfer
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
Designate
Assuming office TBD
Appointed by	Donald Trump
Succeeding	Jane Branstetter Stranch
Personal details
Born	Whitney Dianne Downs 1987 (age 37–38) Clearwater, Florida, U.S.
Education	Princeton University (AB) George Washington University (JD)

Whitney Downs Hermandorfer (born 1987) is an American lawyer working as the director of the Strategic Litigation Unit in the Tennessee Attorney General's office. She is the designate to serve as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

Early life and education

Hermandorfer was born Whitney Dianne Downs in 1987 in Clearwater, Florida. She graduated from Princeton University with an Artium Baccalaureus degree, with a minor in sociology summa cum laude in 2009. She received her Juris Doctor from George Washington University Law School in 2015 and was editor-in-chief of The George Washington Law Review. In law school, she was a recipient of the John Bell Larner Award for having the highest cumulative grade point average.

Career

In 2015, Hermandorfer joined the law firm of Williams and Connolly in Washington D.C. as an associate, where she focused on appellate and administrative law. Hermandorfer served as a law clerk for then-Judge Brett Kavanaugh from 2016 to 2017 while he served on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, as well as for Judge Richard Leon on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia from 2017 to 2018. She later clerked for Associate Justices Samuel Alito (2018–19) and Amy Coney Barrett (2020–21) on the United States Supreme Court. She returned to Williams and Connolly in 2021 and then in 2023 joined the Tennessee Attorney General's office as director of the newly formed Strategic Litigation Unit under attorney general Jonathan Skrmetti.

Nomination to court of appeals

On May 2, 2025, President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Hermandorfer to serve on the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit to succeed Judge Jane Branstetter Stranch, who had announced her intention to take senior status upon the confirmation of a successor. Hermandorfer was Trump's first judicial nominee of the second term. On May 12, 2025, her nomination was sent to the Senate. On June 26, 2025, her nomination was reported from the Senate Judiciary Committee by a party-line 12-10 vote. On July 10, 2025, the United States Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 51–43 vote. On July 14, 2025, her nomination was confirmed by a 46–42 vote. She is awaiting her judicial commission.