Danny Julian Boggs

Born in Havana, Cuba, Boggs received an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1965 from Harvard University. He received a Juris Doctor in 1968 from the University of Chicago Law School.[1]

Boggs began his career as an instructor at the University of Chicago Law School from 1968 to 1969. He served as deputy commissioner of the Kentucky Department for Economic Security at Frankfort, Kentucky from 1969 to 1970. He served as legal counsel and administrative assistant to Governor Louie Nunn of Kentucky from 1970 to 1971. He served as legislative counsel and assistant to the minority leader of the Kentucky State House of Representatives in 1972. He served as an attorney for the Kentucky Republican Campaign in 1972. He worked in private practice in Frankfort in 1973. He served as an attorney for the United States Department of Commerce in 1973. He served as an assistant to the United States Solicitor General at the United States Department of Justice from 1973 to 1975. He worked in private practice in Bowling Green in 1975. He served as an assistant to the Chairman of the Federal Power Commission from 1975 to 1977. He served as deputy minority counsel for the United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources from 1977 to 1979. He served as deputy campaign director for the Nunn for Governor Campaign in Louisville in 1979. He worked in private practice in Washington, D.C. from 1979 to 1981. He was a special assistant to the President in the Executive Office of the President from 1981 to 1983. He was Deputy Secretary of the United States Department of Energy from 1983 to 1986.[1]

Boggs was nominated by President Ronald Reagan on January 29, 1986, to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, to a new seat authorized by 98 Stat. 333. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on March 3, 1986, and received commission on March 25, 1986. He served as Chief Judge from 2003 to 2009. He assumed senior status on February 28, 2017. He served as a Member of the Judicial Conference of the United States from 2003 to 2009.[1]

Boggs sparked controversy in 2001 by accusing then-Chief Judge Boyce F. Martin Jr. of violating Sixth Circuit procedural rules by assigning himself to panels and manipulating the timing of an order. Judge Boggs recused himself from the subsequent panel inquiry, which found a rule violation but recommended no action.

One unusual feature of Judge Boggs' managing style is a general knowledge quiz he gives to clerkship applicants. The quiz strongly emphasizes history, literature, and classics, but also contains questions asking for the takers' opinions. Judge Boggs says he uses the answers to gain insight into potential clerks' interests and personalities. Three of his former clerks appeared on the ABC game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire at the peak of the show's popularity in 2001, and two of them used him as their "phone-a-friend."[2]

• George W. Bush Supreme Court candidates

• Danny Julian Boggs at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
• Judge Danny Boggs To Speak at Law School Commencement, May 15, 2004
• Appearances on C-SPAN