WASHINGTON, May 23 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) applauded President Biden’s announcement today for his nomination of Mary Kay Lanthier, of Orwell, Vermont, to be the next District Court judge in the District of Vermont. Sanders and Welch jointly recommended Lanthier to the White House after their nonpartisan Judicial Nomination Advisory Panel submitted her name for consideration by the senators.

Mary Kay Lanthier began her legal career as a judicial law clerk for the trial courts in Chittenden County and Addison County. Today, Lanthier serves as the Supervising Attorney at the Rutland County Public Defender’s Office, a position she has held since 2007. Prior to her position at the Rutland County Public Defender’s Office, Lanthier worked in private practice and public defense, working primarily on family law, workers’ compensation, and criminal cases. Lanthier received her undergraduate degree from Amherst College and her law degree from Northeastern University School of Law. From 2017-2023, she taught evidence labs at Vermont Law School.

“Mary Kay Lanthier has dedicated her career to public defense and ensuring that everyone has a fair chance in the courtroom, and I expect that she will bring that experience to the bench if she is confirmed to this role,” Sanders said. “Her peers in the Vermont legal community know that her skill, high ethical standards, and professionalism will carry over to her service as a federal judge. I am confident that she will be fair and impartial and that everyone in her courtroom will be treated with the compassion, respect, and dignity they deserve.”

“Mary Kay Lanthier is an excellent nominee for this Rutland-based seat on the federal district court. She has spent her legal career here in Vermont where she has earned a clear and deserved respect – in the courtroom, in the legal community, and across the state,” said Welch, member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. “Ms. Lanthier has devoted her career to ensuring that the legal system works for everyone, no matter their background, and her formidable trial experience will serve her well on the bench. As a former public defender, I look forward to Ms. Lanthier’s public service continuing in this new capacity in the community she calls home.” 

Sanders and Welch have strongly advocated for the Senate to confirm more qualified judges who understand the lived experiences of working Americans to fill the vacancies in the federal courts across the country; a quality Mary Kay Lanthier embodies with her stellar reputation in the legal community and her career in public defense. The senators from Vermont will guide Lanthier’s nomination through the Senate.