U.S. District Judge David Hale to speak at Brandeis School of Law convocation

United States District Judge David J. Hale, from the Western District of Kentucky, will be the speaker at Brandeis School of Law’s convocation on Saturday.

Judge Hale agreed to speak to this year’s graduating class after the original speaker, Judge John G. Heyburn II, passed away last week following a battle with liver cancer.

“We are so grateful that Judge Hale agreed to step in and speak after the loss of our original speaker, Judge Heyburn. Judge Hale is the newest appointment to the Western District Bench and is a wonderful person. All of us at Brandeis appreciate his willingness to be a part of this special day and we look forward to hearing him share his wisdom to our graduating students,” said Dean Susan Duncan.

President Barack Obama nominated Judge Hale on June 19, 2014. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 3, 2014, and received his commission on December 10, 2014.  His chambers are in the Gene Snyder U.S. Courthouse in Louisville.

Immediately prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge Hale served as United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky, from May 2010 to December 2014.  As the chief federal law enforcement officer for the district, he led an office of more than 80 professionals, including federal prosecutors, support and administrative staff.

During his tenure as U.S. Attorney, Hale emphasized a renewed collaboration between federal, state and local law enforcement, which resulted in new anti-violence initiatives; he prioritized national security, health care fraud and economic fraud prosecutions; he chaired a U.S. Attorney working group on service member and veterans support; he sponsored Kentucky’s first statewide prescription pill summit; and he sponsored a new statewide health care fraud task force.

Judge Hale practiced law in Louisville for more than 20 years.  He started as a litigation associate at Brown, Todd & Heyburn (now Frost Brown Todd) in 1992, before moving to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in 1995, to serve as an Assistant U.S. Attorney.  He returned to private practice in 1999 with the firm of Reed Weitkamp Schell & Vice, where he practiced commercial litigation until his appointment as U.S. Attorney in 2010.

While in private practice, Judge Hale served on the boards of the Louisville Urban League, Kentucky Educational Television (KET), and the Kentucky YMCA Youth Association.

Judge Hale is a graduate of Vanderbilt University and the University of Kentucky College of Law.  His wife, Ann, is a registered nurse, his daughter Caroline a college sophomore, and his son John David, a high school senior.