Liles Burke
Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama
Assumed office
October 17, 2018
Appointed byDonald Trump
Preceded byCharles Lynwood Smith Jr.
Judge of the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals
In office
February 2011 – October 17, 2018
Appointed byRobert J. Bentley
Preceded byAlisa Kelli Wise
Succeeded byChris McCool
Judge of the Marshall County District Court
In office
2007–2011
Appointed byBob Riley
Judge of the Arab Municipal Court
In office
2001–2007
Personal details
Born (1969-06-11) June 11, 1969
Cullman, Alabama, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
EducationUniversity of Alabama (BA, JD)
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Alabama Army National Guard
Years of service2013–2023
Rank Major
UnitJ.A.G. Corps
Awards
See list

Liles Clifton Burke (born June 11, 1969) is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama. His official duty station is the United States Courthouse at Huntsville, Alabama. He previously was an Associate Judge of the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals.

Early life and education

Burke is a native of Arab, Alabama, and was educated in that city's public school system. He received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Alabama in 1991 and Juris Doctor from the University of Alabama School of Law in 1994.[1]

Career

Upon graduation from law school, he began practicing with his father, Claud Burke, at the law firm of Burke & Beuoy, P.C., where he represented businesses and individuals in general practice, including domestic, criminal, civil litigation, juvenile, and probate matters.

Burke attended The JAG School at the University of Virginia and entered the Judge Advocate General's Corps of the Alabama Army National Guard. He served for more than a decade, achieving the rank of Major.

He also served as a Municipal Prosecutor and Municipal Attorney for the City of Arab, and was named as the Municipal Judge for that City in 2001. He held that office until 2006 when he was appointed Marshall County District Judge by Governor of Alabama Bob Riley. In 2008, Burke was elected to a full term on the District Court without opposition. Burke began Marshall County's first family drug court, and along with District Judge Tim Riley, implemented one of Alabama's first domestic violence courts. Additionally, he served as an officer in both the Alabama District Judges Association and the Alabama Juvenile Judges Association.

In 2011, Governor Robert J. Bentley appointed Burke to the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals, where he served until becoming a United States district judge. He was elected to a six-year term in 2012 without opposition. While on the Court of Criminal Appeals, Burke also served as the president of the Alabama Appellate Judges Association.

Burke has been active over the past many years in several charitable and community organizations, leading the Marshall County United Way fund drive, serving as President of the Arab Chamber of Commerce, and serving on the board of the Marshall County Healthcare Authority. He is Methodist, a Rotarian, and an alumnus of Leadership Alabama.[1]

Federal judicial service

On July 13, 2017, President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Burke to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.[2] On July 19, 2017, his nomination was sent to the Senate. He was nominated to the seat vacated by Charles Lynwood Smith Jr., who assumed senior status on August 31, 2013.[3] On October 4, 2017, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[4] On October 26, 2017, his nomination was reported out of committee by an 11–9 vote.[5]

On January 3, 2018, his nomination was returned to the president under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate.[6] On January 5, 2018, President Donald Trump announced his intent to renominate Burke to a federal judgeship.[7] On January 8, 2018, his renomination was sent to the Senate.[8] On January 18, 2018, his nomination was reported out of committee by an 11–10 vote.[9] On October 11, 2018, his nomination was confirmed by a 55–40 vote.[10] He received his judicial commission on October 17, 2018.[11]

Prominent cases

In May 2022, Burke issued a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of an Alabama law which criminalized transgender minors from using hormone therapy and puberty blockers. He concluded that the law had a substantial likelihood of being unconstitutional because it interfered with parents' fundamental rights to direct the medical care of their children and constituted unlawful sex discrimination. The case, Eknes-Tucker v. Marshall, will be set for a final hearing on the merits sometime this year.[12][13]

Personal life

Burke is married to the former Natalie Jones of Jasper, Alabama; they have two children. Natalie Burke is the mayor of the Town of Cherokee Ridge, Alabama.[14]

References

  1. 1 2 "Judge Liles C. Burke". U.S. District Court, Northern District of Alabama. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  2. ↑ " President Donald J. Trump Announces Fifth Wave of Judicial Candidates" White House, July 13, 2017
  3. ↑ "Eighteen Nominations and Two Withdrawals Sent to the Senate Today" White House, July 19, 2017
  4. ↑ United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Nominations for October 4, 2017
  5. ↑ Results of Executive Business Meeting – October 26, 2017, Senate Judiciary Committee
  6. ↑ "Congressional Record", United States Senate, January 3, 2018
  7. ↑ "President Donald J. Trump Announces Renomination of 21 Judicial Nominees", White House, January 5, 2018
  8. ↑ "Nominations Sent to the Senate Today", The White House, January 8, 2018
  9. ↑ Results of Executive Business Meeting – January 18, 2018, Senate Judiciary Committee
  10. ↑ "On the Nomination (Confirmation Liles Clifton Burke, of Alabama, to be U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Alabama)". United States Senate. October 11, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  11. ↑ Liles C. Burke at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  12. ↑ Eknes-Tucker v. Marshall (M.D. Ala. May 13, 2022), https://www.glad.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/eknes-tucker-ruling-on-pi-5-13-22.pdf
  13. ↑ Fields, Aryn (May 14, 2022). "Judge Halts Alabama Law Criminalizing Parents for Obtaining Essential Medical Care for their Transgender Children". Human Rights Campaign. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Cherokee Ridge Mayor and Town Council Sworn In". The Arab Tribune. August 4, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
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