A Gay Judge with Impeccable Credentials is Finally Confirmed to the Powerful Federal Circuit

The Senate on Tuesday unanimously confirmed the first openly gay U.S. appeals court judge.

With the 98-0 vote, Todd M. Hughes, 46, joins theCourt of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He has been the deputy director of the Justice Department's commercial litigation branch and a longtime staff attorney in the civil division.

The Washington, D.C., court handles nationwide cases involving international trade, government contracts, patents and trademarks, and benefits claims involving veterans, public safety officers and federal workers. He has argued 45 cases before the court, The Legal Times noted.

President Obama nominated Hughes in February, and a Senate subcommittee approved him in July.

At his confirmation hearing, Hughes said that although he was familiar with much of the court's work he would need to get more familiar with intellectual property cases, the paper's blog stated.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) lauded the confirmation, which he called "an important milestone for the judicial branch."

"I am proud that today the Senate is finally taking this critical step to break down another barrier and increase diversity on our Federal bench," Leahy said in astatement.

The advocacy group Alliance for Justice also applauded Hughes' confirmation, noting its push "for a federal judiciary that reflects the full diversity of America and a confirmation process that evaluates candidates based on their legal expertise, not how they look or who they love."

White House Counsel Kathryn Ruemmler said Hughes "has the intellect, experience, integrity, and temperament to be a successful judge. He is also gay."

She added that "many" of Obama's circuit court appointees "have broken new diversity barriers – including three Hispanic, two Asian American, and one African American-who are 'firsts' in their respective courts."

"We look forward to the 'seconds' and 'thirds' who will come after Todd Hughes and his fellow 'firsts' currently serving on our courts," she said in a statement.