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Leonard Steven Grasz

Leonard Steven Grasz

Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals

Born 1961 in Chappell, NE

FJC ID: 4025236

Leonard Steven Grasz (born November 1, 1961) is an American attorney and jurist serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

A graduate of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and the University of Nebraska College of Law, Grasz spent eleven years as the state of Nebraska's Chief Deputy Attorney General. He was a senior partner at the law firm of Husch Blackwell prior to his appointment to the federal judiciary.

At the time of his 2017 nomination for the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary unanimously voted to give Grasz a "not qualified" rating for the position. Grasz was the first circuit court nominee to receive a unanimous "not qualified" rating from the ABA since 2006. Republican Senators accused the ABA of political bias and Grasz testified that the ABA's review process was unprofessional.

Gender
Male
Race
White

Prior employment

  1. Private practice, Omaha, Nebraska
    1989–1991, 2002–2017
  2. State of Nebraska
    State of Nebraska
    Chief deputy attorney general · 1991–2002

Appointments

  1. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals
    2018–present · Appointed by Donald J. Trump (Republican)

Education

  1. University of Nebraska College of Law
    J.D. · 1989
  2. University of Nebraska
    B.S. · 1984