The Honorable Elana S. Suttenberg

Elana S. Suttenberg was nominated by President Donald Trump to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on September 2, 2025. Her nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 18, 2025.

Judge Suttenberg graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia. She earned her Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania, where she had dual majors in Religious Studies and French. She earned her Juris Doctor from the Georgetown University Law Center, where she served as Managing Editor on The Georgetown Law Journal and represented domestic violence victims in the Superior Court as part of the Domestic Violence Clinic. After law school, she clerked for the Honorable Chief Judge Royce C. Lamberth on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.

In April 2012, Judge Suttenberg was sworn in as an Assistant United States Attorney at the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. At the time of her appointment to the bench, she served as Special Counsel for Policy and Legislative Affairs in the Front Office. In that role, she developed and led the legislative efforts of the United States Attorney’s Office, represented the office before the Council of the District of Columbia, and coordinated with external stakeholders, including governmental and community partners. She served as the U.S. Attorney’s designee to the District of Columbia Sentencing Commission, the Criminal Code Reform Commission Advisory Group, the District of Columbia Clemency Board, the Council for Court Excellence’s Criminal Justice Committee, the District Jails and Justice Task Force, and the Redbook criminal jury instruction committee. She has also served as her office’s advisor on ethics and professional responsibility.

Prior to becoming Special Counsel for Policy and Legislative Affairs, she served as a Senior Assistant U.S. Attorney, investigating and prosecuting complex and sensitive cases involving domestic violence and sexual offenses committed against children and adults. During her tenure in the office, she prosecuted numerous cases ranging from misdemeanors to violent felonies, and she briefed and argued cases on appeal. She received numerous Special Act Awards during her time at the U.S. Attorney’s Office and received the U.S. Attorney’s Award for Community Outreach in 2022.