NATIONAL BAR ASSOCIATION

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1 September 30, 2013 The Honorable Patrick Leahy 437 Russell Senate Building Washington DC The Honorable Chuck Grassley 135 Hart Senate Office Building Washington DC Dear Chairman Leahy and Ranking Member Grassley: The affiliate chapters of the National Bar Association represent the interests of legal communities across the country. In recognizing the national importance of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and the magnitude of Judge Robert L. Wilkins nomination to this court, we knew it essential to come together and express our shared support for the confirmation of Judge Wilkins to the DC Circuit. Judge Wilkins is a respected jurist and celebrated litigator. He was nominated by President Obama to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in May 2010 and was rated by the American Bar Association as Unanimously Well Qualified, its highest rating given to judicial nominees. Ultimately, Judge Wilkins was confirmed by unanimous consent and voice vote later that same year. Since that time, Judge Wilkins has earned the reputation as a conscientious and fairminded jurist who dutifully follows the law, as observed by the Wall Street Journal editorial board. He was again rated Unanimously Well Qualified for his nomination to the U.S. Court of Appeals. Judge Wilkins has spent a career demonstrating his commitment to integrity, excellence and service. He received his juris doctorate from Harvard Law School, where he served as the Executive Editor of the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review. Upon graduation, he clerked for the Honorable Earl B. Gilliam on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. After his clerkship, Judge Wilkins worked for over a decade at the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia one of the most competitive public defender offices in the nation. In 2002, Judge Wilkins joined the AmLaw 100 firm Venable LLP as a partner where he specialized in white-collar defense, intellectual property, and complex civil litigation. Judge Wilkins is a respected colleague, an admired scholar, and an inspiring leader. For all of these reasons and more we enthusiastically support his confirmation. Sincerely, Alabama Association Montgomery, Alabama Mound City Bar Association St. Louis, Missouri Arizona Black Bar Phoenix, Arizona Jackson County Bar Association Kansas City, Missouri

2 W. Harold Flowers Law Society Little Rock, Arkansas California Association of Black Mill Valley, California John M. Langston Bar Association Los Angeles, California Charles Houston Bar Association Oakland, California Earl B. Gilliam Bar Association San Diego, California Wiley W. Manuel Bar Association Sacramento, California Black Women Association of Northern California San Francisco, California Black Women Association of Los Angeles Los Angeles, California Richard T. Fields Bar Association Rancho Cucamonga, California Solano County Black Association Vallejo, California Sam Cary Bar Association Denver, Colorado The George W. Crawford Black Bar Association Hartford, Connecticut Midlands Bar Association Omaga, Nebraska Las Vegas Chapter Las Vegas, Nevada Garden State Bar Association Trenton, New Jersey Association of Black Women of New Jersey Trenton, New Jersey New Mexico Black Association Albuquerque, New Mexico The Minority Bar Association of Western New York, Inc. Buffalo, New York Metropolitan Black Bar Association New York, New York Westchester Black Bar Association White Plains, New York Black Bar Association of Bronx County Bronx, New York Association of Black Women Attorneys New York, New York Macon B. Allen Black Bar Association Laurelton, New York Rochester Black Bar Association Rochester, New York Washington Bar Association Washington, District of Columbia Capital District Black & Hispanic Bar Association Albany, New York

3 Greater Washington Area Chapter Women Division Washington, District of Columbia Delaware Barristers Association Wilmington, Delaware Virgil Hawkins Florida Chapter Apopka, Florida Gate City Bar Association DeKalb Association Decatur, Georgia Georgia Alliance of A.A. Attorneys Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys Afro American Association of Hawaii Honolulu, Hawaii Cook County Bar Association Chicago, Illinois Marion County Bar Association Indianapolis, Indiana James Kimbrough Law Association Crown Point, Indiana Iowa National Bar Association Des Moines, Iowa Jackson County Bar Association Kansas City, Missouri North Carolina Association of Black Durham, North Carolina Norman S. Minor Bar Association Cleveland, Ohio Black Association of Cincinnati Cincinnati, Ohio Akron Barristers Association Akron, Ohio Thurgood Marshall Law Association Toledo, Ohio Northeast Oklahoma Black Tulsa, Oklahoma Oklahoma City Association of Black Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oregon Chapter Portland, Oregon The Barristers Association of Philadelphia Philadelphia, Philadelphia Homer S. Brown Law Association Pittsburgh, PA Philadelphia NBA Women Division Philadelphia, PA Thurgood Marshall Law Society of RI Providence, Rhode Island South Carolina Black Association Columbia, South Carolina Louisville Black Association Louisville, Kentucky Donald James Sampson Bar Association Spartanburg, South Carolina

4 John Rowe Chapter Lexington, Kentucky Louis A. Martinet Society of Greater Lafayette Lafayette, Louisiana Black Association of Shreveport- Bossier Shreveport, Louisiana J. Franklyn Bourne Bar Association Upper Marlboro, Maryland Monumental City Bar Association The Everett J. Waring - Juanita Jackson Mitchell Law Society Alliance of Black Women Attorneys Massachusetts Black Association Boston, Massachusetts Floyd Skinner Bar Association Ann Arbor, Michigan Vanzetti Hamilton Bar Association Ann Arbor, Michigan Davis-Dunnings Bar Association Lansing, Michigan Wolverine Bar Association Detroit, Michigan Mallory, VanDyne & Scott Bar Association Flint, Michigan Ben F. Jones Chapter Memphis, Tennessee Napier-Looby Chapter Nashville, Tennessee S. L. Hutchins bar Association Chattanooga, Tennessee W. H. Hastie Bar Association Knoxville, Tennessee Ballard-Taylor Bar Association Jackson, Tennessee Tennessee Alliance for Black Nashville, Tennessee J. L. Turner Legal Association Dallas, Texas Austin Black Association Austin, Texas Houston Association Houston, Texas San Antonio Black Association San Antonio, Texas L. Clifford Davis Legal Association Fort Worth, Texas Old Dominion Bar Association Richmond, Virginia Loren Miller Bar Association Seattle, Washington D. Augustus Straker Bar Association Troy, Michigan Mountain State Bar Association Inc. Beckley, West Virginia

5 Minnesota Association of Black Minneapolis, Minnesota Magnolia Bar Association Jackson, Mississippi Wisconsin Association of African American Milwaukee, Wisconsin