Senate Judiciary Committee questions Bozeman’s Katie Lane on federal bench nomination

Bozemanite and Trump nominee Katie Lane was vetted for a lifetime appointment to the federal bench on Wednesday by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Republicans zeroed in on Lane’s work ethic and principles, while Democrats raised concerns about her experience.

But Lane’s most beneficial attribute might have been a lack of inflammatory tweets to answer for. Lane was one of four nominees heard Wednesday. The other three were Sheria Clarke, District of South Carolina; Evan Rikhye, District of the Virgin Islands; and Kara Westercamp, Court of International Trade.

The combined duration of Lane’s answers to questions was less than 10 minutes, as other nominees were pressed about social media posts regarding members of Congress, Trump pardons for Jan. 6, 2021, rioters, and whether the nominees believed the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Donald Trump.

“Ms. Westercamp, throughout your prolific inflammatory social media career, you launched personal attacks on multiple members of the Senate. You repeatedly referred to Sen. Mitch McConnell as ‘Cocaine Mitch,’” Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, scolded Trump’s nominee to the Court of International Trade.

Lane wasn’t completely spared. When it was Lane’s time to answer who won the 2020 presidential election, she responded:

“The Constitution outlines the process, and as a judicial nominee, I’m here to talk about what the Constitution requires, which is an electoral vote and certification by Congress. And in 2020…”

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, interrupted. “Who won the election in 2020?” he asked.

“President Biden,” Lane said.

Questioned about what happened at the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol, Lane told Blumenthal, “Senator, the characterization of January 6 is ongoing, is subject to ongoing. And as a nominee, it would be inappropriate for me to characterize it.”

Lane’s questions were more about her familiarity with legal procedure. The 2010 Bozeman High School graduate is a few decades younger than the judges currently on the federal bench in Montana. She has about nine years of legal experience, counting internships. She worked for Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, and more recently for the Republican National Committee. Before attending law school at George Mason University, Lane worked as a congressional intern for U.S. Sen. Steve Daines.

Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California, asked Lane if her “trial experience consisted of being second or third lawyer on a bench trial,” meaning the case is decided by the judge alone. Lane said “yes.”

The word Lane turned to most in describing the cases she worked on as an attorney for the state of Montana was “complicated.”

She was introduced to the committee by Sen. Daines.

“Katie Lane has the right temperament as well to serve as United States District Court judge. She grew up in Montana. In fact, she grew up in Bozeman, my hometown. She attended kindergarten through 12th grade, as I did, in Bozeman, although I went before her, and graduated from my alma mater Bozeman High School,” Daines told the committee. “She spent her summers during those formative years skiing, camping, hiking in Montana, which instilled in her a deep love of the Treasure State and the values that make Montana the last best place.”

U.S. district courts are trial courts of general jurisdiction. Assimilating details on the fly and managing a busy caseload are the name of the game.

“As an attorney representing my client’s interest, I get up to speed very quickly on both the facts and the law and grasp really complicated issues quickly,” Lane told Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tennessee. “If I have the privilege of being confirmed to the District of Montana, I would take that same diligence with me, and not only work really hard to get it right, but also to manage my docket efficiently and to understand all the different legal and factual issues that come before me.”

Blackburn characterized Lane as unflappable and level-headed, based on comments submitted by Lane’s law firm indicating that “work never fazed her.”

The American Bar Association, which recommends a minimum of 12 years of professional experience for federal judges, didn’t score Lane’s nomination.

Carl Tobias, an expert on judicial nominations at the University of Richmond, in Virginia, said in an interview that he expected Lane to be approved along party lines, but said her experience is a concern. There are more experienced conservative attorneys in Montana who could have been nominated, he said. Tobias previously taught law at the University of Montana.

“I’m sure there’s someone presently sitting on the Montana Supreme Court,” Tobas said. “They just named [Bill Mercer], who was the U.S. Attorney for Bush. So, it’s possible to do, and it’s not clear why they’re doing this, except that she’ll serve forever. She’ll be the chief judge and all of that.”

The Senate Judiciary Committee will next determine whether to send the nominations to the floor for a confirmation vote.

Lane would replace Judge Susan Watters on the bench in Billings. Watters announced in 2025 that she will take senior status June 8.