John Z. Lee
John Z. Lee | |
|---|---|
| Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois | |
| Assumed office May 8, 2012 | |
| Appointed by | Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | David H. Coar |
| Personal details | |
| Born | John Zihun Lee March 30, 1968 Aachen, West Germany (now Germany) |
| Education | Harvard University (A.B.) Harvard Law School (J.D.) |
John Zihun Lee (born March 30, 1968)[1] is a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
Biography[]
John Z. Lee was born in Aachen, Germany.[1] He received his Artium Baccalaureus Degree from Harvard College in 1989. He received his Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School in 1992. He first worked as a trial attorney in the Environmental and Natural Resources Division of the United States Department of Justice. He worked as an associate of Mayer Brown LLP from 1994 to 1996 and Grippo & Elden LLC from 1996 to 1999. He was a partner at Freeborn & Peters LLP where he handled complex federal civil litigation.[2][3]
Federal judicial service[]
On November 10, 2011, President Barack Obama nominated Lee to be a District Judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.[2] He would replace Judge David H. Coar who took senior status and has since retired. He received his hearing by the Senate Judiciary Committee on January 26, 2012 and his nomination was reported to the floor on February 16, 2012 by voice vote, with Senator Mike Lee recording the only no vote. On May 7, 2012, his nomination was confirmed by voice vote. He received his commission on May 8, 2012.[3]
Notable rulings[]
In July 2018, Lee, sitting by designation, wrote for the unanimous panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit when it found that the Madison Metropolitan School District was not liable for child sex abuse of a student by its security guard because the school's principal had not had actual knowledge of the abuse.[4][5]
On May 3, 2020, Lee ruled that Governor J. B. Pritzker's Stay-at-home order during the COVID-19 pandemic in Illinois was constitutional, after an Evangelical church sought an injunction against the order to continue worship services.[6]
See also[]
References[]
- ^ a b "Senate Judiciary Committee Questionnaire" (PDF).
- ^ a b "President Obama Nominates Four to Serve on the US District Court Bench". whitehouse.gov. 10 November 2011 – via National Archives.
- ^ a b "Lee, John Zihun – Federal Judicial Center". www.fjc.gov.
- ^ Note, Recent Case: Seventh Circuit Holds School Not Liable in Case of Child Sex Abuse, 132 Harv. L. Rev. 1550 (2019).
- ^ Doe No. 55 v. Madison Metropolitan School District, 897 F.3d 819 (7th Cir. 2018).
- ^ Pope, Ben (2020-05-03). "U.S. district judge rules Pritzker's stay-at-home order constitutional". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2020-05-22.
External links[]
- John Z. Lee at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
- John Z. Lee at Ballotpedia
- 1968 births
- Living people
- Illinois lawyers
- Judges of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
- United States district court judges appointed by Barack Obama
- American people of Korean descent
- American jurists of Korean descent
- United States Department of Justice lawyers
- Harvard Law School alumni
- 21st-century American judges
- Harvard College alumni