Document - Judicial Selection in the States

Judicial Biographies
Supreme Court Justices
Thomas D. Waterman
Supreme Court Justice
Year of Appointment: 2011
Background and Education:
Justice Waterman is a lifelong
Iowan and fourth-generation
lawyer born in Davenport in
1959. He grew up in Bettendorf
with two brothers and three
sisters. He attended public
schools in Bettendorf before
obtaining his undergraduate
degree in history at Dartmouth
College in 1981. He received
his law degree from the
University of Iowa College of
Law in 1984, where he graduated Order of the Coif in
the top five percent of his class, served on the Iowa Law
Review, and published a law review article.
Career: Justice Waterman practiced law for 27 years
at Lane & Waterman, LLP, in Davenport, the oldest
continuous law partnership west of the Mississippi River.
He had a multi-state general civil litigation practice at
the trial and appellate levels in state and federal courts.
He represented farmers, consumers, taxpayers, and
insurance policyholders in class action litigation. He was
named to Best Lawyers in America and received a top
tier ranking in the Chambers Guide to Leading Business
Lawyers for commercial litigation.
Professional Activities: Justice Waterman is a Fellow of
the American College of Trial Lawyers and Iowa Academy
of Trial Lawyers, a member of the American Law Institute,
Iowa Judges Association, Iowa State Bar Association
(ISBA), Scott County Bar Association, American Bar
Association, Dartmouth Lawyers Association, and Dillon
Inns of Court. He is the resident Justice for the Seventh
Judicial District and Liaison Justice for the Eighth Judicial
District. Before his appointment to the Supreme Court,
Waterman was a member of the ISBA Jury Instruction
Committee and served as a co-editor of Defense Update,
a publication of the Iowa Defense Counsel Association.
He was a member of the State Judicial Nominating
Commission from 1999–2003. He was also inducted into
the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel and the
Association of Defense Trial Attorneys. He has authored
numerous articles on legal subjects and is a frequent
lecturer.
Family and Hobbies: Justice Waterman celebrated his
25th wedding anniversary this year with Maria Mihalakis
Waterman, a family law attorney and Dubuque native.
They have four daughters, one attending college and
triplets attending public school in the Quad Cities. His
great-grandfather, Charles M. Waterman, was a justice
on the Iowa Supreme Court from 1898-1902. Before his
appointment, Waterman was an avid endurance sport
enthusiast competing in ultramarathons and ironman
triathlons.
Community Activities: Justice Waterman served as
Chair (Chief Volunteer Officer) for the multi-branch
Scott County Family Y corporate board of directors and
received its Partner with Youth Outstanding Campaign
Leadership Award in 2008. He also served as President of
the Board of Trustees of Rivermont Collegiate, formerly
St. Katherine’s St. Mark’s School.
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