Rosemary M. Collyer

Rosemary Mayers Collyer (born November 19, 1945) is a Senior United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia,[1] and a Judge of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.[2]

Rosemary Collyer
Chief Judge of the Alien Terrorist Removal Court
In office 2016–2020
Preceded by	James C. Cacheris
Succeeded by	James E. Boasberg
Judge of the Alien Terrorist Removal Court
In office 2016–2020
Preceded by	James C. Cacheris
Succeeded by	James E. Boasberg
Presiding Judge of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court
In office May 19, 2016 – December 31, 2019
Preceded by	Thomas F. Hogan
Succeeded by	James E. Boasberg
Judge of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court
In office March 8, 2013 – March 7, 2020
Preceded by	John D. Bates
Succeeded by	Vacant
Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia
Incumbent
Assumed office May 18, 2016
Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia
In office November 15, 2002 – May 18, 2016
Appointed by	George W. Bush
Preceded by	Thomas Penfield Jackson
Succeeded by	Timothy J. Kelly
Personal details
Born	November 19, 1945 Port Chester, New York, U.S.
Education	Trinity Washington University (BA) University of Denver (JD)

Early life and career

Born in Port Chester, New York,[3] Collyer received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Trinity College (now Trinity Washington University) in 1968 and a Juris Doctor from the University of Denver College of Law in 1977.

She was in private practice at the law firm of Sherman & Howard in Colorado from 1977 to 1981. She was then Chairman of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission from 1981 to 1984 and General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board from 1984 to 1989. She returned to private practice in Washington, D.C. as a partner in the firm of Crowell & Moring LLP from 1989 to 2002. She was the first woman to serve as the chair of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Commission, as the general counsel of the National Labor Relations Board, and as the elected chair of a major D.C.-based firm.[4][5]

Judicial service

On August 1, 2002, Collyer was nominated by President George W. Bush to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia vacated by Thomas Penfield Jackson.[6] Collyer was confirmed by the United States Senate on November 14, 2002, and received her commission on November 15, 2002. She assumed senior status on May 18, 2016.

In 2013, Collyer was appointed by the Chief Justice of the United States to a seven-year term on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.[2] The Court provides a measure of judicial oversight over surveillance activities under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, as amended. Judge Collyer's term on the FIS Court began on March 8, 2013 and was set to conclude on March 7, 2020. She replaced Judge John D. Bates, whose term ended on February 21, 2013. On December 20, 2019, she announced she will continue to serve out her full seven (7) year term on the FISC, not as the Presiding Judge FISC due to health reasons ending on December 31, 2019[7] and replaced by FISC Judge James E. Boasberg elevated to preside.

Notable cases

Judge Collyer presided over a number of habeas corpus petitions submitted on behalf of Guantanamo captives.[8]

In United States House of Representatives v. Price (2016), Judge Collyer first found the House had standing to sue the Obama Administration and, then, found that the Administration had unconstitutionally spent billions of Treasury funds on health insurer subsidies without a Congressional appropriation.[9] Judge Collyer enjoined any further insurer reimbursements without a valid appropriation, but stayed her order pending appeal.[10]

Collyer was one of four FISA Court judges who approved a FISA warrant (issued in October 2016 and renewed several times) authorizing the wiretapping of Carter Page.[11] In December 2019 Collyer issued an order saying the FBI "provided false information to the National Security Division (NSD) of the Department of Justice, and withheld material information from NSD which was detrimental to the FBI's case, in connection with four applications to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) for authority to conduct electronic surveillance of a U.S. citizen named Carter W. Page"[12] ordering the government to inform the court of planned procedures to "ensure that the statement of facts in each FBI application accurately and completely reflects information possessed by the FBI that is material to any issue presented by the application."

References

1. "Rosemary M. Collyer". US District Court. Archived from the original on 2008-06-17. Retrieved 2008-06-28.
2. "The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court: 2013 Membership". Federation of American Scientists. Archived from the original on 2013-03-01. Retrieved 2013-07-01.
3. "Ronald Reagan: Nomination of Rosemary M. Collyer To Be a Member of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, and Designation as Chairman". presidency.ucsb.edu.
4. "Above the law? Not quite yet". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2020-09-21.
5. Ho, Catherine (2015-03-09). "Crowell & Moring elects new chairwoman Angela Styles". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2020-09-21.
6. Pres. Nom. 2063, 107th Cong. (2002).
7. Savage, Charlie (December 20, 2019). "Surveillance Court Orders Review of Actions by Ex-F.B.I. Lawyer". New York Times.
8. "Respondents' response to Court's August 7, 2006 order" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. August 15, 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-06-27. Retrieved 2008-06-23.
9. Lyle Denniston (12 May 2016). "Judge: Billions spent illegally on ACA benefits". SCOTUSblog. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
10. Hulse, Carl (13 May 2016). "Judge Backs House Challenge to a Key Part of Health Law". The New York Times. p. A15. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
11. Savage, Charlie (July 21, 2018). "Carter Page FISA Documents Are Released by Justice Department". New York Times.
12. "IN RE ACCURACY CONCERNS REGARDING FBI MATTERS SUBMITTED TO THE FISC" (PDF). U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. December 17, 2019.

External links

• Rosemary M. Collyer at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.