U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday his nomination of Justin Smith to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, based in St. Louis, Missouri.
Smith is a lawyer who appeared on Trump’s legal team in the Supreme Court case addressing presidential immunity. He also represented Trump in litigation brought by writer E. Jean Carroll, in which a jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming her.
According to Smith’s LinkedIn profile, his legal career in Missouri has included roles such as deputy counsel to the state’s governor and deputy attorney general for special litigation. The White House filing of his nomination identifies the St. Louis-based 8th Circuit as the seat to which he has been nominated.
On his social media platform Truth Social, Trump praised Smith, writing: "Justin also played a BIG role in securing a Supreme Court Landmark Victory on Presidential Immunity. He is a true America First Fighter, who will continue to deliver strong results for the American People."
The nomination comes after a 2024 Supreme Court decision that found then former president Trump could not be prosecuted for acts that were within his constitutional powers as president. That ruling related to actions he was facing charges for that took place during his first term in office.
In the same announcement, Trump also nominated three candidates for the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas: Kansas Solicitor General Anthony Powell, Kansas Bureau of Investigation Director Tony Mattivi, and Jeffrey Kuhlman. The president commended the nominees for their dedication to protecting the U.S. Constitution.
Requests for comment were not immediately answered. The article notes that Smith, Kuhlman, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, and the Kansas attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comments about the nominations.
Trump, who returned to the White House last year for a second term, has now nominated more than 40 people to serve on district and appeals courts across the United States.
Context and next steps
The nomination formally places Smith in the federal judicial selection process; the article does not provide details on a confirmation timeline or the Senate’s response. Additional information about hearings, votes, or potential timelines was not included in the report.