The Honorable Whitney Hermandorfer is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. She was nominated to the court by President Donald Trump (R) on May 12, 2025, and confirmed by the United States Senate on July 14, 2025.
Prior to her appointment, she worked in the Office of the Tennessee Attorney General as Director of the Strategic Litigation Unit. In that role, Whitney focused on leading constitutional, statutory, and administrative-law challenges to federal agency action, as well as on defending the State in complex matters at the trial and appellate level.
Whitney previously worked at Williams & Connolly LLP in Washington, DC, where she focused on appellate and administrative-law litigation. Whitney clerked for Justice Samuel Alito in the OT 2018 Supreme Court term and for Justice Amy Coney Barrett during her inaugural OT 2020 term. Prior to that, Whitney clerked for then-Judge Kavanaugh on the D.C. Circuit, and Judge Richard Leon on the U.S. District Court for D.C. Whitney is a graduate of Princeton University and George Washington University Law School.
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Dinner and Keynote Address
2025 Tennessee Chapters Conference
The Joseph401 Korean Veterans Blvd
Nashville, TN 37203
Sixth Circuit Judiciary Panel
Memphis Student Chapter
Memphis Law School1 N. Front St.
Memphis , TN 38103
Litigating in a State Attorney General's Office
Denver Student Chapter
Vanderbilt Law School131 21st Ave S
Nashville , TN 37203
Panel II: Strategic Litigation for Liberty
2024 Tennessee Chapters Conference
The Joseph401 Korean Veterans Blvd
Nashville, TN 37203
Litigation Update: Tennessee v. Cardona
Tennessee v. Cardona concerns the Biden Administration’s recent revisions to regulations under Title IX. Particularly...
Litigation Update: Tennessee v. Cardona
Tennessee v. Cardona concerns the Biden Administration’s recent revisions to regulations under Title IX. Particularly...
Litigation Update: Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany v. Vullo
In 2017, New York passed a law requiring employers to cover abortions in their health...
Litigation Update: Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany v. Vullo
In 2017, New York passed a law requiring employers to cover abortions in their health...
Young Lawyers Special Session: Making Winning Arguments
2024 Florida Chapters Conference
The state and federal bench has transformed in recent years, with more textualist/originalist judges appointed...