Sara Lee Ellis
Appointed by President Barack Obama in 2013 and confirmed by voice vote, Sara Lee Ellis is a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. She earned a law degree from Loyola University Chicago School of Law in 1994. Sources ↓
- Born
- 1969 · age 57
- Appointed by
- Barack Obama, 2013
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- Indiana 1991 · Loyola Chicago Law 1994
- Succeeded
- Joan B. Gottschall
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Northern District of Illinois succeeded Joan B. Gottschall | Obama (D) | Voice vote |
Party letters show the appointing president’s party, not the judge’s own. A voice vote means the chamber approved aloud. No senator-by-senator tally is recorded.
Confirmation vote
Voice vote
The Senate approved this confirmation aloud, with no senator-by-senator tally recorded. Recorded roll-call votes begin in 1989.
Education
| Indiana University | B.A. | 1991 |
| Loyola University Chicago School of Law | J.D. | 1994 |
Judicial Record
Caseload & case types
In our data, Ellis was assigned 4,041 district-court cases (1990–2026). Median time from filing to termination: 196 days across 3,518 closed cases.
Case assignment is from CourtListener’s PACER-derived docket records: a partial sample, not a complete caseload, reflecting the judge last assigned each case. How we count.
On appeal
Of 114 of Ellis’s decisions reviewed on the merits by the U.S. courts of appeals in our data, 85 were affirmed, 23 reversed or vacated, and 6 affirmed in part and reversed in part. This is a historical count of appellate outcomes for cases we could match, not a judgment of the judge, and not a complete record. How we count.
Questions & answers
- Who appointed Sara Lee Ellis?
- President Barack Obama appointed Sara Lee Ellis to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in 2013.
- Was Sara Lee Ellis appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Sara Lee Ellis was appointed by President Barack Obama, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Sara Lee Ellis's confirmation vote?
- Sara Lee Ellis was confirmed by voice vote on October 7, 2013. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court is Sara Lee Ellis on?
- Sara Lee Ellis is a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
Sources
Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.
How we source & reconcile data → Data & Sources
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12 years on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).