Patrick J. Urda

Patrick Joseph Urda (born 1976) is an American lawyer who has served as a judge of the United States Tax Court since 2018, including as its chief judge since 2025.

Early life Urda grew up in South Bend, Indiana with four siblings, where his father Richard was a tax lawyer and his mother Kathleen taught statistics at St. Mary's College. He is an Eagle Scout. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in classics, summa cum laude, from the University of Notre Dame, where he was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He received his Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School.

Legal and academic career

At the start of his legal career, Urda spent three years in private practice and served as a law clerk to Judge Daniel Anthony Manion of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

From 2012 to 2015 Urda was an adjunct professor at American University Washington College of Law.

Department of Justice career

Before becoming a judge, Urda held several positions with the United States Department of Justice Tax Division. He was counsel to the Deputy Assistant Attorney General, where he advised him and the Tax Division front office on legal and administrative issues facing the Division, particularly regarding appellate and settlement matters. He also served on two temporary detail assignments outside the Tax Division, at the Office of Legal Policy Nominations Counsel, and the Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development Assistance and Training. The Senate Finance Committee held a hearing on his nomination on June 12, 2018, and then reported his nomination unanimously on June 28, 2018. On August 28, 2018, his nomination was confirmed by voice vote.