Joshua Wolson

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Joshua David Wolson (born 1974) is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania .

Contents

• 1 Early life and education

• 2 Career

• 3 Federal judicial service

  • 3.1 Notable cases and rulings

• 4 Memberships

• 5 See also

• 6 References

• 7 External links

Early life and education

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Wolson was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan , in 1974. He attended and graduated from Parkland High School in South Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania , and then attended the University of Pennsylvania , where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts _magna cum laude _ in 1996. Three years later, in 1999, he was awarded his Juris Doctor cum laude from Harvard Law School .

Career

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After graduating from Harvard Law School in 1999, he served as a law clerk to Judge Jan E. DuBois , a federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania from 1999 to 2000. He then joined Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C. , where he served for eight years as an associate in the firm's litigation and antitrust groups.

He returned to Philadelphia and joined Dilworth Paxson's litigation group in 2008, becoming a partner in 2010. He represented plaintiffs and defendants in complex litigation matters, including antitrust, RICO , intellectual property , procurement , and civil rights disputes. He also served as a co-chair of the firm's Plaintiffs' Rights Practice Group and a member of the firm's executive committee.

Federal judicial service

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On May 10, 2018, President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Wolson to serve as a United States district judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania after the seat was vacated by Judge James Knoll Gardner , who assumed senior status on April 3, 2017. On May 15, 2018, Wolson's nomination was sent to the Senate . On July 11, 2018, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee . On September 13, 2018, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 13–8 vote.

On January 3, 2019, his nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate . On January 23, 2019, President Trump announced his intent to renominate Wolson for a federal judgeship. His nomination was sent to the Senate later that day. On February 7, 2019, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 14–8 vote. On May 1, 2019, the Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by a 64–35 vote. On May 2, 2019, his nomination was confirmed by a 65–33 vote. He received his judicial commission on May 28, 2019.

Wolson occupies the same federal judgeship seat for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania that he previously clerked for, having clerked for Judge Jan E. DuBois, who preceded Judge James K. Gardner, who ultimately preceded Wolson.

Wolson has demonstrated a commitment to his local Pennsylvania community. In February 2025, Wolson returned to his alma mater, Parkland High School in South Whitehall Township, to hold a live hearing in front of the school's AP American Government students and members of the school's law club. After the hearing, Wolson answered questions from the students in attendance.

Notable cases and rulings

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On the bench, Wolson has gained notoriety for using pop culture references, especially in introductions, to illustrate legal concepts.

For example, in a 2021 free speech lawsuit, Crash Proof Retirement, LLC v. Paul M. Price, Wolson quoted Taylor Swift to explain that critical opinions do not inherently amount to commercial speech for the basis of a Lanham Act claim, writing:

If free speech means anything, it means that you do not get to sue people because you don't like their opinion of you. In the immortal words of Taylor Swift, although "haters gonna hate, hate, hate . . . ," sometimes you just have to "shake it off." "Shake it off," however, Crash Proof Retirement did not. Instead, it sued Paul M. Price . . . .

Wolson has also made references to Philadelphia. On February 18, 2021, in Julie Darrup v. Wal-Mart Stores East, LP, Wolson wrote:

Philadelphia has much to recommend it. World class cuisine. Great universities. Gritty. But one thing that Philadelphia, and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania as a whole, lacks is any

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