Dick Durbin: “I rise to speak in support of Manish Shah, who has been nominated to serve as a Federal district court judge in the…”

“I rise to speak in support of Manish Shah, who has been nominated to serve as a Federal district court judge in the Northern District of Illinois. Mr. Shah is an outstanding nominee. He has the experience, qualifications and integrity to serve with distinction on the Federal bench. Mr. Shah was nominated to fill the seat that became vacant when Judge Joan Lefkow took senior status. He has been reviewed by my judicial screening committee, and he was chosen by Senator Kirk's committee to serve and I supported the selection. He is a Federal prosecutor in the Northern District of Illinois. He is currently chief of the criminal division of that office and he has a lengthy resume of achievements in this field. Mr. Shaw has won numerous awards and recognitions for his work in the U.S. attorney's office, including the FBI Director's Award for Outstanding Criminal Investigation. He graduated from Stanford University and the University of Chicago Law School. He clerked for 2 years for Judge Jim Zagel of the Northern District of Illinois. Incidentally, his nomination in the Northern District of Illinois is historic. Upon confirmation, he will be the first article III judge of South Asian descent to serve in the State of Illinois. He appeared before the Judiciary Committee last November in a hearing that I chaired. He was reported out unanimously from that committee.…”