| Michael J. Lindner | |
| Office: | Judge, Fairfax County General District Court (19th Judicial Circuit of Virginia) |
| Term: | July 1, 2015 - Present |
| Birth Name: | Michael Joshua Lindner[1] |
| Birth Date: | 1959 |
| Birth Place: | Tallahassee, Florida, U.S. |
| Alma Mater: | Kenyon College American University Washington College of Law (J.D.) |
Michael Joshua Lindner is a judge of the 19th Judicial Circuit General District Court of Virginia in Fairfax County, Virginia, in the United States, elected February 25, 2015 by the Virginia Senate[2] and the Virginia House of Delegates,[3] for a 6-year term commencing July 1, 2015.[4] His election was preceded by a selection process wherein candidates were evaluated by the Fairfax Bar Judicial Selection Committee which issued an Executive Summary on his candidacy.[5]
He received a Bachelor of Arts in history from Kenyon College in 1981. A graduate of the American University Washington College of Law, Lindner was admitted to the Virginia State Bar in 2001.
Despite success in producing computer video games at Legend Entertainment,[6] Lindner switched careers and launched his own law firm in Fairfax in 2001, focusing primarily on criminal and traffic litigation.
As a criminal defense attorney, he handled difficult cases such as homicide trials[7] and representation of persons wrongly held in custody.[8] He served as a substitute judge from 2010 to 2015 and presided over causes in General District and Juvenile and Domestic Relations District courts throughout Northern Virginia.[9] He helped reinvigorate, and from 2012 to 2015, was Co-Chair of the Fairfax Bar Criminal Law Practice Section, serving for the first year in collaboration with David Bernhard.
As a Judge, he has pioneered[10] and promoted implementation of the model Veterans Treatment Docket program,[11] and presided over its first graduates.[12] The program takes a novel hybrid approach, integrating the resolution of criminal cases for criminally-involved veterans with mental health and substance abuse treatment and veteran mentorship. The program has not been without controversy, initially struggling to gain legislative support in the Virginia General Assembly.[13] However, the Supreme Court of Virginia enacted a rule regularizing the existence of such specialty dockets.[14] Lindner's accomplishments both in private practice and as a judge, and perseverance in nurturing the Veterans Treatment Docket, resulted in him being named a "Leader in the Law" by Virginia Lawyers Weekly in 2016.[15]