Jonathan A. Kobes

Jonathan Allen Kobes (born August 25, 1974) is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

Education Kobes received his Bachelor of Arts from Dordt University and his Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School, where he was an editor and the business manager of the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy. On June 11, 2018, his nomination was sent to the Senate. Trump nominated Kobes to the seat being vacated by Judge Roger Leland Wollman, who previously announced his intention to assume senior status upon confirmation of a successor. On August 22, 2018, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee. On September 14, 2018, the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary rated Kobes "Not Qualified." The ABA's report said that Kobes was "a very accomplished, competent, and capable person, but his career path has not resulted in sufficient evidence of a developed ability to do the written work of a United States circuit court judge." The ABA report questioned Kobes' understanding of "complex legal analysis" and "knowledge of the law". On November 29, 2018, the United States Senate invoked cloture on Kobes' nomination by a 50–49 vote, with Vice President Mike Pence breaking the tie. On December 11, 2018, he was confirmed by a 51–50 vote, with Pence casting his vote in the affirmative. He was the first federal judicial nominee ever confirmed by a tie-breaking vote. Kobes received his judicial commission on December 12, 2018.

Notable cases

In December 2021, Kobes upheld the 20-year prison sentence of a doctor at the United States Department of Veterans Affairs who misdiagnosed a patient, resulting in the patient's death.

Memberships Kobes was a member of the Federalist Society from 1999 to 2004.