Julie Rikelman

Julie Rikelman is a United States circuit judge on the First Circuit Court of Appeals. Appointed by President Joseph R. Biden and confirmed in 2023, she brings extensive experience in civil litigation and reproductive‑rights advocacy to the federal bench. Prior to her judicial service, Rikelman practiced law in both private firms and nonprofit organizations, represented abortion providers in high‑profile Supreme Court and appellate cases, and held senior litigation roles at a major media corporation.

Early life and legal career

Julie G. Rikelman was born on June 16, 1972, in Kyiv, Ukraine, to Jewish parents. Her family immigrated to the United States in 1979, where she pursued her education. Rikelman attended Harvard College, graduating magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in 1993. She continued at Harvard Law School, earning a Juris Doctor cum laude in 1997.

Following law school, Rikelman entered judicial clerkships that provided early exposure to appellate practice. From 1997 to 1998 she served as a law clerk for Justice Dana Fabe of the Alaska Supreme Court. The subsequent year she clerked for Judge Morton Ira Greenberg on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

Rikelman’s commitment to reproductive‑rights issues began with a two‑year fellowship at the Center for Reproductive Rights, where she was a Blackmun Fellow from 1999 to 2001. After completing the fellowship, she entered private practice as an associate at Feldman & Orlansky in Anchorage, Alaska, from 2001 until 2004. She then moved to New York City, joining Simpson Thacher & Bartlett as a senior associate between 2004 and 2006.

In 2006 Rikelman transitioned to the corporate sector, taking on a series of litigation positions with NBC Universal, Inc. Over five years she advanced to vice president of litigation, overseeing complex commercial disputes for the media company. In 2011 she returned to nonprofit advocacy, becoming senior litigation director for the Center for Reproductive Rights, a role she held through 2023. During this period she directed national strategies and argued numerous cases concerning abortion access and related constitutional questions.

Federal appellate service

President Joseph R. Biden announced his intent to nominate Rikelman to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on July 29, 2022. The nomination was formally transmitted to the Senate on August 1, 2022, designating her to fill the seat vacated by Judge Sandra Lynch, who had indicated an intention to assume senior status upon confirmation of a successor. The American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary evaluated Rikelman’s qualifications and unanimously rated her as “well qualified” for the appellate judgeship.

The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Rikelman’s nomination on September 21, 2022. During the questioning, Republican senators focused on her prior advocacy for abortion rights and on an academic article she authored concerning Fourth Amendment limits on mandatory blood collection for DNA testing. The committee initially failed to report her nomination, voting 11–11 on December 1, 2022. Under Senate Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6, the nomination was returned to the President on January 3, 2023, and Rikelman was renominated later that same day.

On February 9, 2023 the Judiciary Committee reported her nomination out of committee by a vote of 11–10. The full Senate subsequently moved toward confirmation. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer filed cloture on the nomination on June 12, 2023; the Senate invoked cloture three days later with a 53‑45 vote. Rikelman’s confirmation vote occurred on June 20, 2023, resulting in a 51‑43 affirmation. She received her judicial commission on June 23, 2023 and has served as an active circuit judge on the First Circuit since that time.

Jurisprudence and legacy

Rikelman’s pre‑judicial career was marked by extensive involvement in litigation concerning reproductive rights. She represented providers of abortion services in several notable federal cases that shaped national discourse on the constitutional status of abortion. Among these, she served as counsel for a Mississippi clinic in *Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization*, the Supreme Court case that ultimately overruled *Roe v. Wade* and eliminated the federally protected right to abortion.

Her appellate advocacy also included participation in *June Medical Services LLC v. Russo* (2020), a case addressing state‑level restrictions on abortion providers, and representation of Texas medical providers challenging the constitutionality of Texas House Bill 15, which imposed informed‑consent requirements for abortions. In December 2014 she argued before the Fourth Circuit on behalf of plaintiffs contesting North Carolina’s “Woman’s Right to Know” Act, a statute mandating ultrasound viewing and fetal description prior to an abortion.

Rikelman further contributed to litigation challenging Texas Senate Bill 8, which required physicians to perform a medically unnecessary procedure intended to cause fetal demise before a dilation‑and‑evacuation abortion could be performed. She acted as co‑counsel for multiple providers and patients in the Fifth Circuit challenge to that law. In 2021 she again appeared before the Fourth Circuit, representing North Carolina abortion providers who sought to invalidate state provisions criminalizing pre‑viability abortions.

Beyond courtroom advocacy, Rikelman authored a scholarly article examining appellate decisions that permitted mandatory blood collection for DNA testing under the Fourth Amendment. In that work she argued that such compulsory procedures were inconsistent with constitutional protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.

Rikelman's transition from litigator to judge places her within a broader context of legal professionals who have moved from advocacy on contentious social issues to the federal judiciary. Her extensive experience in appellate litigation, particularly concerning reproductive‑rights jurisprudence, informs her perspective as she adjudicates cases on the First Circuit. While her judicial record is still developing, observers note that her background provides substantive expertise in constitutional and civil rights matters that frequently arise before the appellate courts.

As a member of the First Circuit, Rikelman participates in panels reviewing appeals from district courts within the circuit’s jurisdiction, which includes Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Puerto Rico, and Rhode Island. Her contributions to panel opinions, both authored and joined, will shape the development of federal law across a range of issues, from civil procedure to constitutional interpretation.

Rikelman's career reflects a trajectory that combines academic achievement, private‑sector experience, nonprofit advocacy, and now federal judicial service. The combination of her immigrant background, elite education, and long‑standing involvement in high‑stakes reproductive‑rights litigation underscores the diversity of professional pathways leading to appointment on the United States Courts of Appeals. Her ongoing work as a circuit judge will continue to influence legal precedent within the First Circuit and, through appellate review, potentially affect national jurisprudence.