The judges of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland are pleased to announce the appointment of Deborah L. Boardman to the position of United States Magistrate Judge.  Ms. Boardman will take the oath of office during an informal ceremony on September 25, 2019.  A formal ceremony will be held at a later date in the Baltimore Courthouse.

Ms. Boardman was born and raised in Maryland.  She attended Frederick County public schools.  She received her undergraduate degree, summa cum laude, from Villanova University.  After college, she was a Fulbright Scholar in Amman, Jordan.  She received her law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law, where she was a member of The Virginia Law Review.  Upon graduation, she was a law clerk for the Honorable James C. Cacheris of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.  For six years, Ms. Boardman was an associate at Hogan & Hartson LLP (now Hogan Lovells) in Washington, DC, where she practiced complex commercial litigation.  She had an active pro bono practice and was selected to serve as the senior associate in Hogan’s pro bono department.  In 2008, Ms. Boardman joined the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the District of Maryland.  In 2015, she was named the First Assistant Federal Public Defender.  During her 11-year tenure with the Federal Defender’s office, Ms. Boardman represented individuals charged with federal crimes in the Greenbelt and Baltimore courthouses.   

United States Magistrate Judges are appointed by the district judges for a term of eight years and are eligible for reappointment to successive terms.  The position filled by Ms. Boardman became open when U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher was commissioned as a United States District Judge on September 13, 2019.  In anticipation of Judge Gallagher’s elevation, a merit selection panel composed of attorneys and other members of the community reviewed all qualified applications before recommending a slate of candidates to the full bench for review.  Ms. Boardman was selected from this slate.