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title: "Matthew Alexander Schwartz | KnowJudges"
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# Matthew Alexander Schwartz

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit · U.S. Circuit Judge

## Profile

- Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- State: National federal courts
- Role: U.S. Circuit Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-07-25

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## Biography

### Professional career

- American judge serving on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, appointed by President Donald J. Trump and confirmed by the Senate on July 14, 2026
- From 2007 to 2026, Schwartz was a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP in New York City
- Law clerk, Hon. Samuel A. Alito, Jr., Supreme Court of the United States, 2006-2007
- After law school, he held the role of a law clerk to Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr. first on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (2003–2004) and later on the U.S. Supreme Court (2006–2007).
- Law clerk, Hon. Samuel A. Alito, Jr., U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 2003-2004

### Education

- Columbia Law School — J.D. (2003)
- Princeton University — B.A. (2000)

### Additional information

- Nomination: April 27, 2026, by President Trump to replace Debra Ann Livingston.
- Commission issued: July 24, 2026.
- Senate Judiciary Committee vote: June 18, 2026 — 12–10 party line.
- Senate confirmation: July 14, 2026 — 50–45 vote.
- Private practice, New York City, 2004-2006, 2007-2026
- Born October 1978, New York City.
- focusing on securities law, mergers and acquisitions, antitrust, bank regulation, contracts, constitutional and administrative law, and commercial litigation.
- He also held the role of personal counsel to President Trump in several cases, including the Stormy Daniels hush money appeal.
- As a circuit judge, Schwartz hears appeals in federal cases within the Second Circuit’s jurisdiction, which covers New York, Connecticut, and parts of Vermont and New Jersey.
- Schwartz is married to Amy Cayne and has four children; they reside in Westchester, New York.

## Before you appear

- Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed.
- Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance.
- Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding.

## Courtroom Rules

### appellate oral argument

Scope: courtwide

In federal courts of appeals, oral argument is allowed unless a three-judge panel unanimously finds one of Rule 34's specified grounds for dispensing with it; the clerk provides the date, time, place, and time allocation.

Evidence excerpt: Oral argument must be allowed in every case unless a panel of three judges who have examined the briefs and record unanimously agrees that oral argument is unnecessary

[Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-appellate-procedure)
Source checked: 2026-07-26


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13762140)
- [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13762140)
- [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13762140)
- [Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-appellate-procedure)
- [Judge Matthew Alexander Schwartz](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13762140)

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