-9999

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, today, the Senate will vote to confirm Dena Coggins to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California.

Born in Sacramento, Judge Coggins received her B.S. from California State University, Sacramento, and her J.D. from the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law. She then entered private practice, where she worked on general litigation and family law matters. From 2013 to 2015, she worked as a deputy legal affairs secretary for then- Governor Jerry Brown. Judge Coggins later served as a supervising attorney and hearing officer at the California Victim Compensation Board and as an administrative law judge at the State of California's Office of Administrative Hearings. As an administrative law judge, she presided over more than 150 evidentiary hearings or trials that resulted in proposed or final decisions. Since 2021, Judge Coggins has served as a judge on the Superior Court of California in Sacramento County. In that role, she has handled assignments in both the criminal division and juvenile court. Judge Coggins has presided over approximately 100 juvenile dependency trials, and she has served as the presiding judge of the Juvenile Court since 2023.

The American Bar Association rated Judge Coggins as ``well qualified'' to serve on the Eastern District of California. She has deep ties to the district, and she enjoys the strong support of her home State Senators and the California legal community.

Judge Coggins's litigation background and her courtroom experience as an advocate, administrative law judge, and State court judge ensure that she will be an asset to the district court. I am proud to support her nomination, and I ask my colleagues to join me in my support.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source