DETROIT (AP) — Michigan’s newest federal judge has been sworn into office just days after being confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
Shalina Kumar, the former Oakland County Circuit Court chief judge, took the judicial oath during a Thursday ceremony at the federal courthouse in Detroit, court officials said. Kumar, whose father is from India, is the first person of South Asian descent to be nominated for a federal judgeship in Michigan.
Kumar said in a statement that she was deeply humbled by the faith and trust President Joe Biden and senators had given her.
Kumar will be based at the U.S. Courthouse in Flint, one of five federal courthouses in Michigan’s Eastern District, which covers roughly the eastern half of the state’s lower peninsula.
Then-Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm appointed Kumar as an Oakland County judge in 2007 and she had since been elected times to six-year terms.
Biden nominated Kumar in June to replace federal Judge Victoria Roberts, who has moved to senior status to oversee a reduced caseload. The U.S. Senate voted in favor of her confirmation on Dec. 17.
