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President Joe Biden announced nominees Wednesday for district courts in Minnesota, California, and Pennsylvania. The nominees are Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Kay Costello for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Margarete Provinzino for the District of Minnesota, and Judge Noël Wise for the Northern District of California.

Biden Names Prosecutors For 3 District Courts : Nominee Backgrounds

Mary Kay Costello

Costello has served as assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania since 2008. Before that, she was a litigation associate at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP and Saul Ewing LLP, the White House announcement states. She graduated from Temple University Beasley School of Law after serving in the U.S. Air Force for eight years. Sens. John Fetterman, D-Pa., and Bob Casey, D-Pa., applauded the nomination. "As a military vet and longtime federal prosecutor, she has devoted her career to defending our nation, fighting corruption, rooting out fraud, and keeping our communities safe," Casey said in a statement. "I look forward to voting to swiftly confirm her and to help her make history."

Laura Margarete Provinzino

Provinzino has been an assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Minnesota since 2010. Previously, she was a litigation associate at Robins Kaplan LLP and clerked for Judge Diana E. Murphy on the Eighth Circuit, according to the White House. Provinzino received her law degree from Yale Law School.

Judge Noël Wise

Judge Wise has served on the Superior Court of California in Alameda County since 2014. She was previously a judge pro tem for the California Second District Court of Appeal. She was also a partner at Wise Gleicher, which she founded, and in-house counsel for Pacific Gas and Electric Company, her White House biography states. Other roles she has held include of counsel at Stoel Rives LLP, a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice's Environmental and Natural Resources Division, and assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of California. After graduating from Nova Southeastern University's Shepard Broad Law Center, she clerked for Justice Harry Lee Anstead on the Florida Fourth District Court of Appeals. Judge Wise also holds a J.S.M. from Stanford Law School.

Senators' Reactions

The nominations have been met with support from various quarters. Sens. John Fetterman and Bob Casey emphasized the importance of Costello’s extensive experience and commitment to public service.