Susan O. Hickey Explained

Susan O. Hickey
Office:Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas
Term Start:February 14, 2019
Predecessor:Paul K. Holmes III
Office1:Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas
Term Start1:October 19, 2011
Appointer1:Barack Obama
Predecessor1:Harry F. Barnes
Office2:Judge for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit of Arkansas
Term Start2:2010
Term End2:2011
Birth Name:Susan Bronwyn Owens[1]
Birth Date:26 September 1955
Birth Place:Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Education:University of Arkansas (BA, JD)

Susan Bronwyn Owens Hickey (born September 26, 1955) is the Chief United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas.

Early life and education

Born in Dallas, Hickey earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1977 from the University of Arkansas and a Juris Doctor in 1980 from the University of Arkansas School of Law.[2]

Career

Before pursuing a legal career, she served as a Bank teller for the United Federal Savings Bank in Springdale, Arkansas in 1978.

Her legal career began in 1981 when she served as an attorney for a single trial while employed at Brown, Compton, and Prewett Ltd in El Dorado, Arkansas.

From 1981 until 1984, Hickey worked as a staff attorney at Murphy Oil Corporation.[2] She then served as a career law clerk to Judge Harry F. Barnes of the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas until 2010.[2] In 2010, Hickey became an Arkansas Circuit Courts Judge on the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit.[2]

Federal judicial service

On April 6, 2011, President Barack Obama nominated Hickey to a seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas to fill the vacancy created when Harry F. Barnes assumed senior status in 2008.[3] On October 13, 2011, the United States Senate confirmed Hickey by an 83–8 vote.[4] She received her commission on October 19, 2011. She became chief judge on February 14, 2019, succeeding Paul K. Holmes III.

Notes and References

  1. https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/download/susan-hickey-public-questionnaire Committee Questionnaire
  2. Web site: The White House: Office of the Press Secretary . President Obama Nominates Two to the United States District Court . April 6, 2011 . . . April 8, 2011.
  3. Web site: The White House: Office of the Press Secretary. Nominations Sent to the Senate, 4/6/2011. April 6, 2011. National Archives. whitehouse.gov. April 8, 2011.
  4. Web site: On the Nomination (Susan Owens Hickey, of Arkansas, to be United States District Judge). senate.gov.