# Beth Brinkmann > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Beth_Brinkmann > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Beth_Brinkmann.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beth_Brinkmann > Source revision: 1353347764 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) **Beth S. Brinkmann** (born September 24, 1958) is an American [lawyer](/source/Lawyer) who served as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the [United States Department of Justice](/source/United_States_Department_of_Justice), heading up the appellate staff in the DOJ's [Civil Division](/source/United_States_Department_of_Justice_Civil_Division) during the administration of President [Barack Obama](/source/Barack_Obama). She also served as Assistant to the [Solicitor General of the United States](/source/Solicitor_General_of_the_United_States) from 1993 through 2001. Brinkmann has argued 25 cases before the [United States Supreme Court](/source/United_States_Supreme_Court) both in that role and in her later role as a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of the firm [Morrison & Foerster](/source/Morrison_%26_Foerster). Currently, Brinkmann is a partner at the [Covington & Burling](/source/Covington_%26_Burling) law firm in Washington, D.C.[1] ## Early professional career Brinkmann graduated [Phi Beta Kappa](/source/Phi_Beta_Kappa) in 1980 with a bachelor's degree from the [University of California, Berkeley](/source/University_of_California,_Berkeley), and earned her [J.D.](/source/Juris_Doctor) degree from [Yale Law School](/source/Yale_Law_School) in 1985. She served as a [law clerk](/source/Law_clerk) to Judge [Phyllis A. Kravitch](/source/Phyllis_A._Kravitch) of the [U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit](/source/U.S._Court_of_Appeals_for_the_Eleventh_Circuit). Brinkmann then served as a law clerk to Justice [Harry Blackmun](/source/Harry_Blackmun) of the [U.S. Supreme Court](/source/U.S._Supreme_Court) from 1986 to 1987. Brinkmann then worked for four years as an associate with the small San Francisco litigation firm of [Turner & Brorby](/source/Turner_%26_Brorby), after which she served as an [assistant federal public defender](/source/Federal_public_defender) from 1991 through 1993 in Washington, D.C. ## Work in the Solicitor General's office Brinkmann became assistant to the [U.S. Solicitor General](/source/Solicitor_General_of_the_United_States) in December 1993. She argued her first case before the Supreme Court on March 23, 1994. Brinkmann was the tenth woman hired as an assistant to the Solicitor General, with five more women hired during her eight years in that office.[2] She is one of 726 women who have argued before the Supreme Court, from the first in 1880 through 2016.[3] ## Private practice After leaving the Solicitor General's office, Brinkmann joined Morrison & Foerster in early 2002. As a partner at Morrison & Foerster and the chair of the firm's Appellate Practice Group, Brinkmann continued to argue cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. "Every time you go up there, it is amazing, and an honor and privilege being there. You also feel very patriotic—at least I do," Brinkmann told the [National Journal](/source/National_Journal) in 2002.[4] In a November 20, 2007 article in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, Brinkmann told the paper that she had argued 22 cases before the Supreme Court in her career. Eighteen of those times were as a staff lawyer in the Solicitor General's office, Brinkmann told *[ABA Journal](/source/ABA_Journal)* in an article that ran in the magazine's March 2005 issue.[5] ## Work in the Obama administration On April 3, 2009, Brinkmann was tapped to join the [United States Department of Justice](/source/United_States_Department_of_Justice) as the Deputy Assistant Attorney General heading up the Appellate staff in the DOJ's Civil Division.[6] After Obama left office, Brinkmann joined the law firm of Covington & Burling.[7] ## Possible future federal judicial service In the March 12, 2008, issue of [The New Republic](/source/The_New_Republic), writer [Jeffrey Rosen](/source/Jeffrey_Rosen_(legal_academic)) floated Brinkmann's name as a future federal appeals-court judge or Supreme Court justice, likening her to Chief Justice [John Roberts](/source/John_Roberts) by suggesting her as a possible "Democratic female John Roberts". Rosen also characterized Brinkmann as "moderate, pragmatic and pro-business".[8] ## Theater Playing the role of attorney for [Electra](/source/Electra), in June 2019 in [Washington, D.C.](/source/Washington,_D.C.) Brinkmann participated in the [Shakespeare Theatre Company](/source/Shakespeare_Theatre_Company)'s Oresteia mock trial, based on the [Orestia trilogy](/source/Oresteia) by the ancient Greek tragedian [Aeschylus](/source/Aeschylus).[9] ## See also - [List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States (Seat 2)](/source/List_of_law_clerks_of_the_Supreme_Court_of_the_United_States_(Seat_2)) - [Barack Obama Supreme Court candidates](/source/Barack_Obama_Supreme_Court_candidates) ## References 1. ["Beth Brinkmann"](https://www.cov.com/en/professionals/b/beth-brinkmann) 1. Brinkmann, Beth (Spring 2003). ["A First Argument in the Tradition of Many"](https://www.thefreelibrary.com/A+first+argument+in+the+tradition+of+many.-a0106471957). *Journal of Appellate Practice and Process*. **5** (1) 1. Trestman, Marlene. ["Women Advocates Before the Supreme Court, From October Term 1880 through December 2016"](http://supremecourthistory.org/history_oral_advocates.html). Supreme Court Historical Society. 1. [National Journal Magazine Archive](http://lobby.la.psu.edu/_107th/121_Human_Cloning/News_Stories/National%20Journal/National_Journal_030902.htm) 1. [Through the Doors | ABA Journal - Law News Now](http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/through_the_doors1/) 1. ["MoFo's Brinkmann to Head DOJ's Civil Appellate"](http://legaltimes.typepad.com/blt/2009/04/mofos-brinkmann-to-head-dojs-civil-appellate.html) 1. Arluck, Taylor (February 6, 2017). ["Covington Adds Ex-Deputy Assistant Attorney General to Appellate Group"](https://www.cov.com/-/media/files/corporate/publications/2017/02/covington_adds_ex_deputy_assistant_ag_to_appellate_group.pdf). Law 360. 1. Rosen, Jeffrey (March 12, 2008). ["Short Bench: Why the Dems lack Supreme Court nominees"](http://www.tnr.com/article/short-bench). *The New Republic*. Retrieved April 16, 2010. 1. ["The Oresteia Mock Trial"](https://www.c-span.org/video/?462003-1/justices-breyer-ginsburg-participate-the-oresteia-mock-trial). *C-SPAN*. 24 June 2019. Retrieved 18 January 2020. ## External links - [United States Department of Justice - Civil Division](https://www.justice.gov/civil/) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Beth Brinkmann](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beth_Brinkmann) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beth_Brinkmann?action=history)). 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