Hoeven Introduces Phil Axt at Senate Judiciary Hearing

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven today introduced North Dakotan Phil Axt at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to consider Axt’s nomination to serve as U.S. District Court Judge for North Dakota. Hoeven recommended Axt for the position, citing among other things, his work as Solicitor General in the North Dakota Attorney General’s Office and his service in the U.S. Army. “Phil has the right experience and legal temperament to serve on the U.S. District Court. He has dedicated his life to public service, starting with his service in the U.S. Army as an intelligence officer. Following his military service, he completed legal internships, clerkships and served as a legal fellow in the U.S. Senate. I first met Phil when he joined my office as a legal fellow, where he demonstrated a solid legal mind, along with good common sense and strong work ethic. Most recently, Phil has served as Solicitor General for the North Dakota Attorney General’s Office, overseeing our state’s litigation and representing North Dakota before federal and state courts. I encourage the committee to approve Phil’s nomination and advance his confirmation to the full Senate,” said Hoeven. As Solicitor General in the North Dakota Attorney General’s Office, Axt oversees the state’s litigation against the federal government and other states, defends state laws from constitutional challenges and represents North Dakota before federal and state courts. Prior to this, he worked as a litigation associate representing clients in federal and state courts. He served as law clerk for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, a legal intern in a U.S. Attorney’s office and a legal fellow for Senator Hoeven. Axt received his law degree from Yale Law School and graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He is a fifth generation North Dakotan, attended Bismarck High School and was raised in part on the family farm in Sheridan County. Axt is being nominated to fill the vacancy created when Judge Daniel Traynor was confirmed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. -###-