District
10 reviews
Judge Brinkema cares far more about her docket than giving anyone a fair trial. It doesn’t even seem to have occurred to her that some defendants could be innocent. She is rude, arrogant, and closed-minded. An awful judge.
Speed at huge quality expense. Imperious. Seems a good person but incredibly tactless and inappropriate comments in court. Re-traumatized my client and while everyone else saw it, she didn't.
I SAT IN ON THE CORNELIUS GRANT WILLIAMS CASE, JUDGE BRINKEMA HAD ALREADY MADE HER DECISION TO PUT THIS YOUNGMAN AWAY FOR LIFE AFTER THE JURY TRAIL. AS A ATTORNEY IM STILL NOT UNDERSTANDING HER DECISION. I DONT CARE TO HAVE HER AS MY JUDGEIN ANY CASE.
I have had three civil matters before Judge Brinkema. She is prepared, intelligent and decides matters quickly. She is one of my favorite jusdges to appear before. If only every judge managed their docket the same way!
Attended two hearings with her. She was simply not prepared. Had not read the filings - what is the point in providing courtesy binders if they would not read the material. In one ruling she completely erred and that too without giving any chance to the attorneys to speak.
In some 30 years of trying civil, but mainly criminal cases, both as a prosecutor and defense counsel, I found Judge Brinkema to be the single best trial judge before whom I've ever appeared. In a fairly recent, and high-profile case -- which was retried following an appellate reversal -- Judge Brinkema, newly assigned to the case, gave both sides a completely fair shake. She made tough calls right down the middle. It was a genuine pleasure to appear before her, and I hope to get the chance to do so again.
Judge Brinkema is a very smart judge, and is a pleasure to try a case before. She keeps reasonably good control of her courtroom, and is usually decisive in making rulings. She has a reputation for being somewhat biased in favor of plaintiffs in civil actions, but I've seen very little evidence of that (although I usually represent defendants). There are no more "Judge Brinkema" stories today than there were "Judge Bryan" stories in this district a decade or more ago.
She is very smart, but biased and makes up her mind very early in the case no matter what the facts or law may show. Everyone I know seems to have a "Judge Brinkema story" which is not a good thing. She is a terrible judge.
One of the worst judges in the country. It would help if she actually thought about decisions prior to just shooting from the hip.
My year long clerkship with Judge Brinkema was the best experience of my legal career! Judge Brinkema has a reputation for being an extremely fair and impartial judge. She really gets her clerks involved in every aspect of her court and values hard work and excellent writing skills. She also stays involved with her former clerks as a mentor and career counselor even after they leave. I give her the highest of marks!