Richard B. Russell Federal Building in downtown Atlanta.
Caption

Richard B. Russell Federal Building in downtown Atlanta. / U.S. District Court Northern District of Georgia

A focus of President Donald Trump’s administrative agenda, reshaping the judiciary, moves forward in Atlanta with the latest conservative jurist set to take a seat on the federal appeals court in Atlanta.

Former federal prosecutor Steven Grimberg was confirmed to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia 75 to 18 in the U.S. Senate Wednesday. Georgia Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and David Perdue, R-Ga., both voted yes.

“I’m glad the Senate has confirmed Steven to serve Georgia and the United States on the bench in the same district where he compiled an impressive record for the U.S. attorney’s office. I thank him for his past service and his continued willingness to serve," Isakson said in a statement.

Perdue also appluaded the confirmation. “As a first-generation American and proud graduate of Emory University, Steven Grimberg has distinguished himself by spearheading the development of a cybercrime unit in Georgia to prosecute criminal organizations around the world," Perdue said in a statement. "I’m confident Steven Grimberg will continue to serve Georgia with integrity in this new role, just as he has throughout his impressive legal career.”

The federal court's jurisdiction includes four divisions: Atlanta, Gainesville, Newnan and Rome. Across all four the court serves residents in 46 counties.

Grimberg formerly led a team of prosecutors in Atlanta’s U.S. Attorney’s office for cybercrime. He will be leaving his current role as the managing director and General Counsel of global investigations firm, Nardello & Co. He’s a graduate of Emory Law School, and current adjunct professor.

Trump announced Grimberg’s nomination in April and it was approved by the Senate judiciary Committee in June.

He will take the seat previously held by Richard Story, who assumed senior status in December and will work a reduced caseload.

Grimberg becomes Trump’s fourth appointment to the influential federal bench in Atlanta. Judges William McCrary Ray II and Michael Lawrence Brown were both appointed in 2018. Judge J.P. Boulee was appointed earlier this year.