Brent R. Appel

Appel is a native of Dubuque, Iowa.[3] He graduated from Stanford University with concurrent Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees in 1973.[3] He earned his Juris Doctor at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law in 1977.[3] At Berkeley, he was an editor of the California Law Review and won the McBaine Moot Court.[4]

After graduating from law school, Appel clerked on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.[3]

Appel was then was First Assistant Attorney General of Iowa from 1979 to 1983 and Assistant Iowa Attorney General from 1987.[3] While working at the Iowa Attorney General's Office, he argued four cases before the Supreme Court of the United States, including Nix v. Williams.[3]

From 1983 to 2006, Appel worked in private practice in Des Moines,[3] including at the law firms Dickinson, Mackaman, Tyler & Hagan P.C.[5] and Wandro, Baer, Appel & Casper P.C.[6] He specialized in commercial litigation, employment law, and personal injury.[4]

Appel unsuccessfully ran once for the Iowa General Assembly as a Democratic candidate.[7]

Appel was nominated by Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack for a term starting in 2006 to succeed James H. Carter on the Iowa Supreme Court.[7]

In 2010, Chief Justice John Roberts appointed Appel to a six-year term as a member of the Federal Advisory Committee on the Rules of Evidence.[3]

Appel's wife, Staci Appel, is a former member of the Iowa Senate from the 37th district. She was the Democratic nominee for Iowa's 3rd congressional district in 2014. Appel has six children, five sons and one daughter.[3]

• Iowa Judicial Branch page for Brent R. Appel
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