Roberto Lange has been recommended by U.S. Sen. Tim Johnson to serve as a U.S. District Court judge for South Dakota.
Lange, a Madison, S.D., native, was recommended to fill one of two positions created by two current federal judges taking senior status. Lange would be assigned to the Central Division of the U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota, headquartered in Pierre. Although the recommendation for the position was made by Sen. Johnson, the actual nomination must come from President Barack Obama and is subject to approval by the U.S. Senate.
"I look forward to undertaking this tremendous responsibility and to doing my best to apply the law fairly and properly to all parties and cases before me," Lange said. "I have enjoyed my 20 years in private practice at the Davenport Law Firm, and would not have left for any other opportunity."
Lange joined the firm as a litigator in 1989 and became a partner in 1993. He handles complex commercial litigation, products liability and significant injury cases, class action and ERISA litigation and other business disputes for both smaller and nationally known clients. He also appeared before the United States Supreme Court in 2005, arguing Rhines v. Weber, a case on which he was court-appointed counsel.
Lange received a B.A. degree from the University of South Dakota, where he graduated magna cum laude in 1985, and a law degree from Northwestern University in 1988, also cum laude. While at Northwestern he served as an editor and on the board of the Northwestern University Law Review. Before joining the law firm, he was a law clerk for U.S. District Judge Donald J. Porter in Pierre.