Former Law School Professor David R. Stras Nominated to 8th Circuit Court of Appeals
David R. Stras, an associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court and a former professor at the Law School, was nominated on Monday to the United States Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit by President Donald Trump. Stras was a faculty member at the Law School from 2004 to 2010, teaching and writing primarily in the areas of constitutional law, federal courts and jurisdiction, and criminal law. In 2006, just two years after arriving at the Law School, he was named the Stanley V. Kinyon Tenure Track Teacher of the Year. He served as the faculty advisor for the Minnesota Law Review and as co-director of the Institute for Law and Politics. Stras was appointed to the Minnesota Supreme Court by then-Gov. Tim Pawlenty (’86) in 2010.
“During his years on our faculty, David Stras achieved a distinguished record as a highly accomplished scholar, teacher, and colleague,” said Garry W. Jenkins, dean and William S. Pattee Professor of Law. “We are proud to have originally brought him to Minnesota and to see him go on to serve the public with distinction, first on the Minnesota Supreme Court and soon, upon his confirmation, on the 8th Circuit.”
Stras received his B.A. (with highest distinction), MBA, and J.D. (Order of the Coif) from the University of Kansas. After clerkships on the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 4th and 9th Circuits, he worked as an associate at Sidley Austin Brown & Wood in Washington, D.C. (2001-02), and clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas (2002-03). His scholarship has been published in the Georgetown Law Journal, Northwestern Law Review, and Constitutional Commentary, among many others.
Stras’s nomination for the lifetime appointment requires confirmation by the U.S. Senate. A timeline for the confirmation process has not yet been announced. Further coverage of the nomination is available from the Minneapolis Star Tribune, St. Paul Pioneer Press, Minnesota Public Radio, and the New York Times.
