| Morgan Christen | |
| Office: | Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit |
| Term Start: | January 11, 2012 |
| Appointer: | Barack Obama |
| Predecessor: | Andrew Kleinfeld |
| Office1: | Associate Justice of the Alaska Supreme Court |
| Term Start1: | April 5, 2009 |
| Term End1: | January 11, 2012 |
| Appointer1: | Sarah Palin |
| Predecessor1: | Warren Matthews |
| Successor1: | Peter J. Maassen |
| Birth Name: | Morgan Brenda Christen or Brenda June Christen[1] |
| Birth Date: | 5 December 1961 |
| Birth Place: | Chehalis, Washington, U.S. |
| Spouse: | James Torgerson[2] |
| Children: | Erin Christen |
| Education: | University of Washington (BA) Golden Gate University (JD) |
Morgan Brenda Christen (born December 5, 1961) is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as a U.S. circuit judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She previously served as a state court judge on the Alaska Supreme Court from 2009 to 2012 and on the Alaska Superior Court from 2002 to 2009.[3]
Christen was born in 1961 in Chehalis, Washington. She graduated from the University of Washington in 1983 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in international studies. She then attended the Golden Gate University School of Law, graduating with a Juris Doctor in 1986.
After graduating from law school, Christen was a law clerk to Alaska Superior Court judge Brian Shortell from 1986 to 1987. From 1987 to 2002, she was in private practice at the law firm Preston Gates & Ellis, becoming a partner in 1993.
Christen was a judge on the Alaska Superior Court from 2002 to 2009. In 2009, she was one of two candidates recommended by the seven-member Alaska Judicial Council to replace Justice Warren Matthews on the Alaska Supreme Court.[4] Christen was opposed by anti-abortion advocacy groups due to her service as a Planned Parenthood board member in the mid-1990s.[3] [4] Nonetheless, on March 4, 2009, Governor Sarah Palin selected Christen to fill the vacancy on the Alaska Supreme Court.[4]
On May 18, 2011, President Barack Obama nominated Christen to the seat on the Ninth Circuit vacated by Andrew Kleinfeld, who assumed senior status on June 12, 2010.[5] On September 8, 2011, the Senate Judiciary Committee reported her nomination out of committee by a voice vote. The Senate confirmed Christen by a 95–3 vote on December 15, 2011.[6] She received her commission on January 11, 2012 and maintains her chambers in Anchorage.[7]