Judge Stephen Vaden

Judge Stephen Vaden is a judge on the US Court of International Trade. He was appointed to the bench in 2020 by President Donald Trump.

On May 6, 2024, thirteen federal judges, including Judge Vaden, sent a letter to Columbia University condemning the repeated instances of antisemitism on the campus after Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel.

An inmate convicted of terrorism and vandalism offenses filed a judicial misconduct complaint against Judge Vaden for signing the letter. The misconduct complaint is currently pending before the Seventh Circuit’s Judicial Council.

The Chief Judges of the Court of Federal Claims, and United States Courts of Appeals for the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits, dismissed similar complaints about the letter. Those dismissals have all been affirmed by the relevant Judicial Councils (LINK).

The inmate has no connection to Columbia University, any law school, Judge Vaden, or any case that could come before Judge Vaden.

First Liberty, along with Lisa Blatt from Williams & Connolly LLP, represent Judge Vaden.