Alison Nathan

Background

Judge Alison J. Nathan was nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York by President Obama and confirmed in 2011. Before her judicial appointment, she worked as a law clerk for Justice John Paul Stevens at the Supreme Court and served as an Associate White House Counsel.

The Maxwell Trial

Judge Nathan presided over the United States v. Ghislaine Maxwell trial, which began in late November 2021. The trial lasted approximately three weeks. On December 29, 2021, the jury returned a guilty verdict on five of six counts, including the most serious sex trafficking conspiracy charges.

Sentencing

At the June 28, 2022 sentencing hearing, Judge Nathan sentenced Maxwell to 20 years in federal prison. She rejected Maxwell’s arguments for leniency, finding that Maxwell had been an active participant in the abuse not merely a passive observer and that the sentence was proportionate to the severity and duration of the crimes.

Juror Controversy

After the verdict, a juror publicly discussed having shared his own sexual abuse history during deliberations. Maxwell’s defense moved for a new trial, arguing the juror’s non-disclosure in voir dire constituted grounds for reversal. Judge Nathan held evidentiary proceedings and denied the motion for a new trial. This issue was later the basis of Maxwell’s appeal to the Second Circuit, which also denied relief.

Elevation

Judge Nathan was subsequently confirmed as a Circuit Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit the court that heard and denied Maxwell’s appeal in 2024.