Bernard A. Friedman

Bernard A. Friedman (born September 23, 1943) is a federal judge, who, from 2004 to 2009, served as Chief Judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan

Early life and education

Born in Detroit, Michigan, Friedman received a J.D. from Detroit College of Law in 1968. He was in the United States Army, JAG Corps from 1967 to 1968, reaching the rank of lieutenant. He continued at this rank in the United States Army Reserve JAG Corps from 1968 to 1973.

Career

Friedman was a felony trial attorney of Wayne County Prosecutor's Office, Michigan from 1969 to 1970. He was in private practice in Detroit, Michigan from 1970 to 1974, and in Southfield, Michigan from 1974 to 1982. He was a judge on the 48th District Court, Michigan from 1982 to 1988.

On February 2, 1988, Friedman was nominated by U.S. President Ronald Reagan to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan vacated by Robert Edward DeMascio. Friedman was confirmed by the United States Senate on April 19, 1988, and received his commission on April 20, 1988. He was elevated to the position of chief judge in 2004 and assumed senior status on January 1, 2009. When he took senior status, he was replaced by Judge Gershwin A. Drain.

Overturning Michigan's same-sex marriage ban

On March 21, 2014, Judge Friedman struck down Michigan's constitutional and statutory bans on same-sex marriage. As he did not immediately issue a stay on his ruling, more than three hundred marriage licenses were issued to same-sex couples before the Sixth Circuit Court issued a stay on Friedman's ruling the next day, pending appeals. The federal government announced it would recognize the marriages that took place during the brief period it was legal.

References

• Bernard A. Friedman at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.

Legal offices
Preceded by Robert Edward DeMascio	Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan 1988–2009	Succeeded by Gershwin A. Drain