[Pages S9179-S9181]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Nomination of Samantha D. Elliott

Madam President, I also rise today to support Samantha Elliott's
nomination to serve on the U.S. District Court for the District of New
Hampshire.
Our court system was established to serve as an independent arbiter
that would deliver equal justice under the law, and our democracy
requires an independent and impartial judiciary for us to continue
moving forward as a nation. I am confident that, if confirmed, Samantha
Elliott will bring the necessary impartiality, experience, and
commitment to justice to the Federal bench.
A resident of Concord, NH, Ms. Elliott has spent years representing
Granite Staters and has been a leader within the New Hampshire legal
community. In her legal practice, she has represented clients at every
level of New Hampshire's State court, the U.S. District Court for the
District of New Hampshire, and the First Circuit Court of Appeals.
Throughout her career, Ms. Elliott has earned the respect and
admiration of those within the legal community. With the support of her
peers, she has been selected for inclusion in the ``Best Lawyers in
America'' as well as in the ``New England Super Lawyers.'' These awards
are a testament to the reputation that she has built in and outside the
courtroom.
For this role on the U.S. District Court for the District of New
Hampshire in particular, members of the American Bar Association's
Standing Committee unanimously found Ms. Elliott to be ``well
qualified''--a distinction that reflects Ms. Elliott's integrity,
professional competence, and temperament.
I also want to note Ms. Elliott's impressive record of using her
professional expertise to give back to her community and to our State.
She has served on the board of New Hampshire Legal Assistance and with
the Legal Advice and Referral Center, which is dedicated to providing
legal services to low-income Granite Staters. This year, she became
cochair of the founding board of directors for 603 Legal Aid--another
critical resource and legal support system for those in need. She has
taken on all of these roles while also fulfilling leadership roles
within her own firm and tending to a robust legal practice of her own.
Members of New Hampshire's small and tight-knit legal community
marvel at Ms. Elliott's time management skills as well as her wide-
ranging practice and capacity as an attorney. But what drives her
colleagues' respect and admiration is her clear-eyed and passionate
commitment to ensuring that everyone in our democracy has access to
justice and her understanding that lawyers are privileged to be able to
provide it.
Samantha Elliott will be a fairminded, balanced, and intellectually
curious judge who will serve Granite Staters with distinction on the
U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire. I look forward
to voting in favor of her nomination, and I urge all of my colleagues
to do the same.

[[Page S9180]]

I know that my colleague Senator Shaheen is here today to speak about
Ms. Elliott's experience as well.
I yield the floor to the Senator.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Hampshire.
Mrs. SHAHEEN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for
up to 5 minutes before the vote.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mrs. SHAHEEN. Madam President, I am really pleased to join my
colleague Senator Hassan to speak in support of Samantha Elliott's
nomination to the Federal District Court for the District of New
Hampshire.
As we heard from Senator Hassan, Samantha Elliott has had an amazing
public service career. Her professional experience and commitment to
ensuring equal access to justice make her eminently qualified to serve
on the Federal bench. She will make an excellent addition to the
Federal district court in New Hampshire.
Now, Samantha actually came to the practice of law in a less
traditional way. She started out first as a writer for magazines before
she and her husband flipped a coin to see who would go to law school.
After graduating from Columbia Law School--she obviously won the toss--
she joined Gallagher, Callahan and Gartrell, a law firm in Concord, our
capital city.
Since becoming an attorney, Samantha has litigated before Federal and
State courts, handling an impressive collection of matters that
involves complex areas of law. She has also served in a variety of
leadership positions at her firm, including serving as president for 5
years.
During the selection process, Samantha always came back to the
importance of equal access to justice, saying at one point: ``No one
closes or opens doors to access to justice like a judge does.''
Samantha knows firsthand, through her extensive work with the New
Hampshire legal aid community, just how correct that saying is.
For 9 years, she served on the joint board of the New Hampshire Legal
Assistance and the Legal Advice and Referral Center, and she has held
various roles on its executive committee. Samantha has also spent more
than 2\1/2\ years on a special committee that has met every other
Monday to revisit the structure of legal aid in New Hampshire. Just
think about that--every other Monday for 2\1/2\ years to better
restructure legal aid in New Hampshire. These tireless efforts
culminated in the creation of 603 Legal Aid, which is a new entity that
will increase access to justice for New Hampshire's low-income
residents.
Samantha has consistently demonstrated her commitment to ensuring
that everyone has access to justice no matter what their socioeconomic
status. As a result of her commitment, her tenacity, and her respect
for the law, Samantha's nomination has garnered widespread support
throughout the New Hampshire legal community, including from Chuck
Douglas, who is a former Republican Representative to Congress and New
Hampshire Supreme Court Justice. Now, he has only ever faced Samantha
as an adversary in litigation, but he said she is an ``excellent lawyer
who is creative and diligent and exhibits the highest standards of our
profession.''
In addition to former Justice Douglas, Samantha's nomination is
supported by a diverse collection of attorneys and others in the New
Hampshire legal community, including the New Hampshire Women's Bar
Association; Judge Gary Hicks, who is a current supreme court justice
in New Hampshire, a senior associate; and George Moore, the executive
director of the New Hampshire Bar Association, to name just a few of
those who have weighed in with letters of support.
Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to have these letters of
support printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:

New Hampshire Women's Bar

Association,

October 4, 2021.
Re: Nomination of Samantha Elliott to the United States
District Court for the District of New Hampshire
Dear Chairman Durbin and Ranking Member Grassley: On behalf
of the unanimous Board of Directors of the New Hampshire
Women's Bar Association, and in my personal capacity as her
law partner, I write, collectively with the Board, in support
of Samantha Elliott's nomination for the United States
District Court for the District of New Hampshire. We urge the
Committee and full Senate to promptly review and confirm her
nomination.
Since admission to the bar, Attorney Elliott has spent her
entire legal career practicing in New Hampshire. She has
represented plaintiffs and defendants, individuals,
corporations, and governmental entities. She has handled
matters in nearly all areas of civil practice, such as
commercial disputes, employment and discrimination, product
liability, property rights, and municipal defense in civil
rights litigation. She has successfully represented clients
in litigation, trials, and appeals in every New Hampshire
state court, the United States District Court for the
District of New Hampshire, and the First Circuit Court of
Appeals.
In addition to her legal work, Attorney Elliott has
dedicated over a decade towards volunteer board work in
service to legal aid, first with New Hampshire Legal
Assistance and the Legal Advice and Referral Center, and then
603 Legal Aid. Attorney Elliott frequently speaks on lawyers'
continuing legal education panels, including multiple years
with the Federal Practice Institute. She is an active member
of the American Inns of Court, and has served on both the New
Hampshire Court Accreditation Commission and the Federal
Court Advisory Committee.
The New Hampshire Women's Bar Association Board of
Directors strongly supports Attorney Elliott's nomination to
the federal bench. Attorney Elliott is an outstanding member
of our legal community. She possesses the mental acumen and
temperament to decide matters fairly and impartially. She
would be an asset to the federal judiciary, and we strongly
recommend her appointment.
Sincerely,
Caroline K. Leonard, NHWBA President 2020-2022; Christina
A. Ferrari, Immediate Past President; Katherine E.
Hedges, Treasurer; Lyndsay N. Robinson, Networking
Chair; Meredith R. Farrell, Public Relations Chair;
Christine Hilliard, Public Service Chair; Emily Gray
Rice, Member at large; Marrielle B. Van Rossum, Member
at large; Lindsey B. Courtney, Vice President; Brooke
Lovett Shilo, Secretary; Alexandra S. Cote, Membership
Chair; Shauna Segelke, Programming Chair; Terri M.
Harrington, Member at large; Courtney G. Tanner, Member
at large.
____

Douglas, Leonard & Garvey, P.C.,

October 6, 2021.
Re: Nomination of Samantha Elliott to the District Court of
New Hampshire
Dear Chairman Durbin and Ranking Member Grassley: I am
writing to support the nomination of Samantha Elliott of New
Hampshire to be a United States District Judge for the
District of New Hampshire.
I served as a judge for over 10 years on the state Superior
Court and the state Supreme Court and have practiced in the
federal courts since I was admitted to the Bar in 1968. I
know what the job entails and that she will perform
admirably.
We currently have at least two cases in which Attorney
Elliott is on the other side. I have never been in litigation
with her other than as adversaries. She is an excellent
lawyer who is creative and diligent and exhibits the highest
standards of our profession. She is well respected in the New
Hampshire Bar and has served our legal aid and legal
assistance programs for years.
I have also dealt with her as a lobbyist for a pool of
municipal governments. While we were adversaries for years
over various immunities and governmental disputes with
plaintiffs, she always kept her word and I could trust her to
accurately convey our negotiated deals even if I were not
present to submit them to a committee. That is an extremely
rare quality, and one that is not general currency in our
capital or yours.
I have no hesitation supporting her nomination and know she
will serve the judiciary well on our bench.
By the way I enjoyed serving with then Congressman Durbin
when I was in the House in 1989 and 1990.
Sincerely,
Charles G. Douglas, III.
____

October 2, 2021.
Re: Nomination of Samantha D. Elliott to the United States
District Court for the District of New Hampshire
Dear Chairman Durbin and Ranking Member Grassley: We are
writing in enthusiastic support of Samantha Elliott's
nomination to the United States District Court for the
District of New Hampshire. Both of us have worked closely
with Ms. Elliott over the past ten years to achieve the goal
of equal access to justice for all in New Hampshire.
Deborah, a legal aid lawyer in Tennessee and New Hampshire
in her early career, served as a judicial officer in New
Hampshire's Superior Court and Family Division for 25 years.
In 2013, following her retirement from the bench, Deborah
joined the overlapping Boards of New Hampshire Legal
Assistance (NHLA)and the Legal Advice & Referral Center
(LARC) serving as Co-Chair of the Joint Board and then Chair
of the LARC Board. Beginning in 2018, Deborah spearheaded the
Statewide Planning Committee,

[[Page S9181]]

created to improve the delivery of quality legal services to
low income and disadvantaged residents of New Hampshire. This
three-year effort resulted in the merger of LARC and the NH
Bar Association's Pro Bono Program into 603 Legal Aid,
collaborating in partnership with NHLA. Ms. Elliott and
Deborah have worked closely over the past five years, as Co-
Chairs of the overlapping Boards, and during this intense
three-year Statewide Planning commitment. Deborah is now a
founding member of the 603 Legal Aid Board, of which Ms.
Elliott is the founding Co-Chair.
John is currently a legal aid consultant and NH school
funding advocate. He worked for 38 years at NHLA New
Hampshire Legal Assistance as a staff attorney and managing
attorney before serving for 18 years as the program's.
Executive Director until his retirement in 2014. During his
time at NHLA he played a leadership role in advocacy for
equal justice in New Hampshire, in the New England region,
and nationally. He was Executive Director of NHLA during the
beginning of Ms. Elliott's term on the overlapping Boards of
NHLA and the Legal Advice and Referral Center (LARC).
We have observed Ms. Elliott's superior intellect and
communication skills, and we have seen how others respond to
her measured and perceptive analysis of difficult problems.
We know how respected she is among her fellow Board members
and the staff of NHLA, LARC, and now 603 Legal Aid, who have
relied on her good and ethical judgment in the governance of
these organizations. And we have been impressed with her work
ethic, her focus, her humanity, and her integrity. She
possesses in great abundance the intelligence, ethical
grounding, and temperament that are vital to being a fair and
effective judge.
While we admire her intellect and her character, from our
perspective as legal aid leaders we want to emphasize Ms.
Elliott's extraordinary fidelity to the concept of equal
justice and her commitment to seeing that everyone has the
opportunity to access this basic American value, no matter
their position in society. The amount of time and energy that
Ms. Elliott has devoted to the cause of equal justice is
immeasurable. Despite the demands of a busy law practice, Ms.
Elliott has unsparingly committed herself to assuring that
New Hampshire's legal aid organizations are well-managed and
highly collaborative, so that they can deliver quality legal
services to the poor. She has used her stellar reputation in
the legal community to recruit prominent lawyers to support
access to justice efforts, whether in leadership positions,
as advocates, or as donors. She has volunteered her own legal
services by assisting the Boards in understanding their
fiduciary responsibilities and providing advice on other
legal matters. She has developed relationships with the
executive leadership of NHLA, LARC, and 603 Legal Aid,
nurturing mutual trust and mutual commitment to mission. And
she has advocated in multiple forums, including at the NH
Supreme Court and in the NH Legislature, in support of
everyone's right to justice and dignity in our legal system.
We hope that you will consider this nomination favorably.
We are confident that, as a judge, Ms. Elliott will be highly
competent and deeply compassionate. We know that she will
treat everyone who appears before her with the respect they
deserve from our judicial system, regardless of their social
status or identity. And, as a member of the federal bench,
she will have the opportunity to bring our court system
closer to the goal of equal access to justice for all.
Sincerely,
Deborah Kane Rein, Esq.,
Lake Worth, FL (formerly Concord, NH).
John E. Tobin, Jr., Esq.,
Concord, NH.
____

New Hampshire Bar Association,

October 1, 2021.
Re: The nomination of Samantha Elliott to the District Court
for the United States District of New Hampshire

Dear Chairman Durbin and Ranking Member Grassley: I write
in support of the nomination of Samantha Elliott to serve as
a judge on the United States District Court for the District
of New Hampshire. I urge the committee and full Senate to
promptly review and confirm her nomination. I have worked
with Attorney Elliott on a number of matters over the years
and found her to be an exceedingly excellent trial lawyer and
advocate for both plaintiffs and defendants. She is
extraordinarily bright, personable, and has a great
temperament to be on the bench. In the course of her career,
she also served as managing partner of her law firm.
In addition, I worked very closely with Attorney Elliott in
her capacity as a Board Member for New Hampshire Legal
Assistance and Legal Advice and Referral Center. Together, we
recently merged the Bar Association's Pro Bono program with
the Legal Advice and Referral Center to create a new
statewide entity to serve indigent citizens. The new
organization's name is 603 Legal Aid, and it was Attorney
Elliott's determination, forthrightness, and ability to bring
various stakeholders to the table that ensured that our
efforts would be successful. There is no doubt that she will
bring the same energy, judgment, and intellectual capacity to
the federal bench.
In closing, I respectfully submit my strong support for
Samantha Elliott and request the committee and full Senate to
promptly review and confirm her nomination to this important
position.
Very Truly Yours,

George R. Moore Esq.,

Executive Director,
New Hampshire Bar Association.
____

Backus, Meyer & Branch, LLP,

Attorneys at Law,

Manchester, NH, October 4, 2021.
Re: Samantha Elliott

Dear Senator Durbin: I welcome this opportunity to support
the nomination of Samantha Elliott. I have practiced law in
New Hampshire since 1977, first with the New Hampshire Civil
Liberties Union, and since 1981 in private practice. My
principal areas of work are plaintiff's employment law and
civil rights. Attorney Elliott has been defense counsel in
several of my cases. In my experience, she is very
knowledgeable of the law, has excellent legal skills, and
works hard to achieve a fair outcome. Notwithstanding her
defense counsel role, she has demonstrated a capacity to
empathize with the plaintiff.
She has a strong commitment to securing equal protection
and justice. Equally important, at least from my perspective,
is her welcoming demeanor which would make her courtroom a
great place to practice law.
Please let me know if I can provide any further
information.
Sincerely,
Jon Meyer.
____

Backus, Meyer & Branch, LLP,

Attorneys at Law,

Manchester, NH, October 4, 2021.
Re: Samantha Elliott

Dear Senator Grassley: I welcome this opportunity to
support the nomination of Samantha Elliott. I have practiced
law in New Hampshire since 1977, first with the New Hampshire
Civil Liberties Union, and since 1981 in private practice. My
principal areas of work are plaintiff's employment law and
civil rights. Attorney Elliott has been defense counsel in
several of my cases. In my experience, she is very
knowledgeable of the law, has excellent legal skills, and
works hard to achieve a fair outcome. Notwithstanding her
defense counsel role, she has demonstrated a capacity to
empathize with the plaintiff.
She has a strong commitment to securing equal protection
and justice. Equally important, at least from my perspective,
is her welcoming demeanor which would make her courtroom a
great place to practice law.
Please let me know if I can provide any further
information.
Sincerely,
Jon Meyer.
____

The State of New Hampshire

Supreme Court,

September 28, 2021.
Re: Nomination of Samantha Elliott to the United States
District Court for the District of New Hampshire

Dear Chairman Durbin and Ranking Member Grassley: It is
with much pleasure that I write to you in support of Attorney
Samantha Elliott. My knowledge of her qualifications derives
from ten years of personal observations including: multiple
arguments before our court; active participation in our
Daniel Webster Inns of Court; and her remarkable public
service.
Attorney Elliott has earned an exalted position among New
Hampshire lawyers. She has the wisdom, the patience, and the
sense of humor necessary to become one of the finest District
Court judges to sit in our lifetime.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you would like any
further information.
Very truly yours,
Gary E. Hicks,
Senior Associate Justice.

Mrs. SHAHEEN. I am confident that Samantha's passion for the law and
dedication to the impartial administration of justice will make her an
excellent judge, and I urge my colleagues to support her nomination.
I yield the floor.