April 23, 2025 – Wisconsin's Federal Nominating Commission, charged by U.S. Sens. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Tammy Baldwin (D.-Wis.) with making recommendations for vacancies in federal judgeships and U.S. attorney positions, is accepting applications for a vacancy on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
The opening resulted when Chief Judge Diane Sykes announced she will be taking senior status. Application materials will be made available beginning April 21, 2025, and must be returned no later than 4:30 p.m., May 21, 2025.
The commission's questionnaire and instructions (which are separate documents) are available in downloadable form. They can be found at the commission’s website:
wisbar.org/fnc.
Attorneys Paul Swanson and Christine Bremer Muggli will serve as co-chairs for the commission for these vacancies. The Commission will be calling for applications for U.S. Attorneys at a later date.
All inquiries and correspondence regarding the Federal Nominating Commission should be directed to Atty. Lisa Roys, Advocacy and Access to Justice Director, State Bar of Wisconsin, P.O. Box 7158, Madison, WI 53707-7158. Atty. Roys may also be reached at (608) 250-6128, toll-free at (800) 444-9404, ext. 6128 or via email at
lroys@wisbar.org.
About the Federal Nominating Commission
The Wisconsin Federal Nominating Commission has been making recommendations to Wisconsin's U.S. senators since 1979.
According to Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution, the U.S. President "shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint" federal judges. The president also appoints U.S. attorneys. By tradition, the president defers to the recommendations of the home state's U.S. senators for these positions.
In 1979, Wisconsin's two U.S. senators, William Proxmire and Gaylord Nelson, established the Wisconsin Federal Nominating Commission, a tradition that has continued to the present day. Democratic and Republican senators have used the commission for every federal judicial and U.S. attorney vacancy in the past 30 years, under both Republican and Democratic administrations.
Sen. Baldwin and Sen. Johnson recently announced a renewed agreement establishing the bipartisan Wisconsin Federal Nominating Commission to provide recommendations for nominations during the 119th Congress for U.S. Attorneys and federal judicial positions. Currently, there are also vacancies in the U.S. Attorney positions for the Eastern and Western Districts of Wisconsin. The Commission will be calling for applications for U.S. Attorneys at a later date.
"The goal for all officers of the court, especially judges, should be the equal application of law,” said Sen. Johnson in a press release. “Our judicial commission has worked in the past, and it can work in the future, if everyone concentrates on finding individuals who will apply the law and not alter it to fit their ideological or policy preferences. I look forward to working with the commission to find individuals to recommend to President Trump who will provide that type of justice for the citizens of Wisconsin.”
“I am proud to work with Senator Johnson this Congress to select qualified, impartial candidates to serve our state and faithfully apply the law,” said Sen. Baldwin. “I have full confidence our bipartisan nominating commission will do its job well of rigorously vetting and selecting candidates with the character, expertise, and experience required to fairly deliver justice for our constituents.”
The State Bar of Wisconsin will continue to provide administrative support to the commission, co-chaired chaired by attorneys Paul Swanson and Christine Bremer Muggli.
