The judges of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland are pleased to announce the appointment of Stephanie A. Gallagher to the position of United States Magistrate Judge. Judge Gallagher took the oath of office in the U.S. Courthouse in Baltimore on April 18, 2011. A formal ceremony will be held at a later date.

Magistrate Judge Gallagher, 38, is a native of Connecticut. She received her undergraduate degree from Georgetown University and her law degree from Harvard Law School. She spent over six years with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maryland, prosecuting a variety of criminal cases ranging from fraud offenses to violent crimes. Prior to serving as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Ms. Gallagher worked with the Washington, D.C. law firm Akin Gump and as a law clerk for then-Chief U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz. After leaving the U.S. Attorney’s Office in 2008, Ms. Gallagher opened a small litigation law firm, Levin and Gallagher, with offices in Baltimore and Washington, D.C. She is admitted to practice law in a number of federal courts and the District of Columbia and was named a “Rising Star” by SuperLawyers magazine in 2009 and 2010.

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 Judge Gallagher was opened when former U.S. Magistrate Judge James K. Bredar was commissioned as a United States District Judge. 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