The Honorable Laura E. Crane

Laura E. Crane was nominated by President Joseph R. Biden Jr. to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on July 14, 2022. Her nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 15, 2022.

Judge Crane was born and raised in Rochester, New York. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Spanish from Duke University in 2003 and her Juris Doctor degree from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis in 2009.

After law school, Judge Crane moved to the District of Columbia and worked with attorneys at the Disability Rights Section of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice from 2009 to 2010. While there, she worked on cases seeking to enforce compliance with the integration mandate of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Judge Crane then worked as a Litigation Associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP in New York from 2010 to 2012 where her practice focused on securities litigation. She also had an extensive pro bono practice and received a Legal Aid Society Award in Recognition of Outstanding Pro Bono Service in 2012.

From 2012 to 2013, Judge Crane returned to the District of Columbia to serve as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable James E. Boasberg of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Following her clerkship, Judge Crane joined WilmerHale as a senior associate in the firm’s government and regulatory litigation group.

In March 2014, Judge Crane was sworn in as an Assistant United States Attorney at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. At the time of her appointment to the bench, she served as a Deputy Chief in the Federal Major Crimes Section, leading a section of prosecutors handling violent crime matters and firearms offenses in District Court. Prior to becoming a supervisor, Judge Crane prosecuted violent crime cases in Superior Court and District Court. During her tenure as an Assistant United States Attorney, Judge Crane was awarded the United States Attorney’s Impact Award, the United States Attorney’s Office Award for Exceptional Service, and two United States Attorney’s Office Team Awards, as well as several United States Attorney’s Awards for Special Achievement.