CATHERINE C. BLAKE (1950–2026)

PUBLIC SERVICE

Judge, August 14, 1995 to April 1999. Administrative Judge, April 1999 to January 3, 2003. Chief Judge, October 4, 2014 to October 6, 2017. Judge, October 6, 2017 to April 2, 2021. Senior Judge, U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, April 2, 2021 to March 4, 2026. Member, Financial Disclosure Committee, 2006–10, and Defender Services Committee, 2010–16 (chair, 2012–16), Judicial Conference of the United States. Board of Directors, Federal Judicial Center, 2012–16.

U.S. Magistrate Judge, U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, 1987–95.

U.S. Attorney (court-appointed), U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, 1985–86.

Assistant U.S. Attorney, 1977–83, and First Assistant U.S. Attorney, 1983–85 and 1986–87, U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.

BIOGRAPHY

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, 1950. Radcliffe College, B.A., magna cum laude, 1972; Harvard Law School, J.D., cum laude, 1975. Admitted to Massachusetts Bar, 1975. Associate, Palmer & Dodge, Boston, 1975–77. Admitted to Maryland Bar, 1977; District of Columbia Bar, 1979.

Member, Federal Bar Association; Maryland State Bar Association; National Association of Women Judges. Member, Board of Directors, Federal Judges Association (treasurer, 2009–13). Member, Board of Directors, Federal Judicial Center, 2012-16. Past vice-president and trustee, Historical Society of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. Past editor, “In Camera,” electronic newsletter. Member, Rule Day Club; Wednesday Law Club; Lawyers’ Round Table.

Author, “Appellate Review of Criminal Sentencing in the Federal Courts,” Kansas Law Review 279 (1976); “Rules and Guidelines for the Management of Attorneys’ Fees,” University of Baltimore Law Review 1 (1997). Pro Bono Service Award, Judges of U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, 2002.

Died in Towson, Maryland, March 4, 2026.

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