Honoring Circuit Judge Pauline Newman Act of 2026

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 10026 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                               H. R. 10026

  To designate courtroom 201 at the Howard T. Markey National Courts 
   Building located at 717 Madison Place NW, Washington, DC, as the 
                     ``Pauline Newman Courtroom''.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 3, 2026

   Mr. Issa introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
             Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
  To designate courtroom 201 at the Howard T. Markey National Courts 
   Building located at 717 Madison Place NW, Washington, DC, as the 
                     ``Pauline Newman Courtroom''.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Honoring Circuit Judge Pauline 
Newman Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Pauline Newman was born on June 20, 1927, and has 
        devoted more than seven decades to the practice of law and the 
        advancement of American innovation.
            (2) On January 30, 1984, President Ronald Reagan nominated 
        Pauline Newman to be a Circuit Judge on the United States Court 
        of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. She was confirmed by the 
        United States Senate on February 27, 1984, and received her 
        commission on February 28, 1984, becoming the first judge ever 
        appointed directly to that court without previously serving on 
        a predecessor court.
            (3) Judge Newman earned a Bachelor of Arts from Vassar 
        College in 1947, a Master of Arts from Columbia University in 
        1948, a Doctor of Philosophy in chemistry from Yale University 
        in 1952, and a law degree from New York University School of 
        Law in 1958.
            (4) In 1951, Judge Newman became the first woman holding a 
        doctorate to be hired as a research scientist at the American 
        Cyanamid Company, where she was listed as an inventor on 
        multiple patents, breaking barriers for women in the chemical 
        sciences and presaging her later trailblazing role in patent 
        law.
            (5) From 1954 to 1984, Judge Newman worked at FMC 
        Corporation, ultimately as Director of the Patent, Trademark, 
        and Licensing Department, and was for many years the only woman 
        to serve as chief patent counsel of a major United States 
        corporation.
            (6) From 1961 to 1962, Judge Newman served, on leave from 
        FMC, as a science policy specialist with the United Nations 
        Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), 
        where she advanced international cooperation in scientific 
        research and the protection of intellectual property.
            (7) Judge Newman was a founder and has served in leadership 
        positions in numerous scientific and legal associations and 
        organizations, including the American Chemical Society, the 
        American Institute of Chemists, the American Association for 
        the Advancement of Science, the American Intellectual Property 
        Law Association, the United States Trademark Association, the 
        New York Patent Law Association, the National Invention Center, 
        the Judiciary Leadership Development Council, the Giles S. Rich 
        American Inn of Court, the Licensing Executives Society, and 
        the International Patent and Trademark Association, among many 
        others.
            (8) Judge Newman has also demonstrated her commitment to 
        the education of future leaders in science and law through her 
        service to educational institutions and related organizations, 
        including the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science, 
        Vassar College, the Medical College of Pennsylvania, Yale 
        University, Franklin Pierce Law School, the New York University 
        School of Law, and as Distinguished Professor of Law at the 
        George Mason University School of Law. Judge Newman has trained 
        and mentored a family of 69 current and former law clerks and 
        dozens of interns and judicial scholars, many of whom have gone 
        on to lead distinguished careers in their own right, including 
        law firm partners, public servants, legislators, judges and 
        professors.
            (9) Judge Newman served on a number of governmental 
        advisory committees and other initiatives, including the 
        Domestic Policy Review of Industrial Innovation, the State 
        Department Advisory Committee on International Intellectual 
        Property, the Special Advisory Committee to the Commissioner on 
        Patent Office Procedure and Practice, and the United States 
        Delegation to the Diplomatic Conference on the Revision of the 
        Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, 
        among others.
            (10) While serving on a presidential advisory committee 
        under President Jimmy Carter, Judge Newman contributed to the 
        effort that ultimately established the United States Court of 
        Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Her important role led to her 
        nomination to that court by President Reagan just a few years 
        later.
            (11) Judge Newman has served as a judge of the United 
        States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit since 1984, a 
        tenure of more than 42 years, and she is currently the oldest 
        active Federal judge in U.S. history.
            (12) Over the course of her tenure, Judge Newman has 
        authored more than 1,000 opinions on the Federal Circuit, 
        including more than 300 dissents, making her the most prolific 
        dissenter in the history of the Federal Circuit.
            (13) Judge Newman's opinions are widely recognized for 
        their rigor and influence, and the Supreme Court of the United 
        States has reversed or vacated a number of Federal Circuit 
        decisions to adopt positions Judge Newman first articulated in 
        dissent.
            (14) Judge Newman's distinguished service on the Federal 
        Circuit has been recognized by countless people, not least of 
        whom have been her colleagues on the Federal Circuit. A chief 
        judge of the court observed, ``there can be no doubt that Judge 
        Newman is the heroine of the patent system,'' and noted that 
        ``many of her dissents have gone on to become the law''. 
        Another chief judge of the Federal Circuit commended her for 
        being ``a pioneer from the start'', and shared that ``her 
        dissents have great force and often persuade other colleagues 
        over time''. Still another former chief judge lauded her 
        longevity and remarked in 2023 that she is ``as sharp as 
        ever''. Another Federal Circuit colleague called her ``a living 
        legend, who epitomizes excellence'', noting that she is ``a 
        role model for many people in the IP world, and particularly 
        women in IP law''. Yet another colleague labeled her ``an 
        icon'', and noted that she is ``a beautiful writer'' who 
        ``demonstrates her views in very forceful, elegant writing''. 
        Still another colleague on her court has praised ``a 
        persistence, a level of scholarship, and an eloquence in her 
        writings that are second to none'', and called her both ``the 
        embodiment of the Federal Circuit'', and ``the conscience of 
        the court''. And Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg of the Supreme 
        Court praised Judge Newman for inspiring women with ``her 
        intelligence, her diligence, her devotion to a very difficult 
        area of the law''.
            (15) Judge Newman's tremendous contributions to the 
        country, society, science, and the law have been honored on 
        hundreds of occasions throughout her career, with awards 
        including the Wilbur Cross Medal of the Yale University 
        Graduate School; the Jefferson Medal of the New Jersey 
        Intellectual Property Law Association; the Award for 
        Outstanding Contributions to International Cooperation from the 
        Pacific Industrial Property Association; the American Inns of 
        Court Lewis F. Powell, Jr., Award for Professionalism and 
        Ethics; induction into the Intellectual Property Hall of Fame; 
        and the establishment of the annual Pauline Newman Award by 
        IPWatchdog recognizing lifetime achievement in patent law.
            (16) Judge Newman's professional accomplishments, 
        distinguished service, thoughtful jurisprudence, remarkable 
        longevity, tremendous courage, and status as an icon, role 
        model, and trailblazer in the American IP community deserve 
        recognition and commendation from a grateful nation.

SEC. 3. PAULINE NEWMAN COURTROOM.

    (a) Designation.--Courtroom 201 at the Howard T. Markey National 
Courts Building located at 717 Madison Place NW, Washington, DC, shall 
be known and designated as the ``Pauline Newman Courtroom''.
    (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, 
paper, or other record of the United States to Courtroom 201 at the 
Howard T. Markey National Courts Building referred to in subsection (a) 
shall be deemed to be a reference to the ``Pauline Newman Courtroom''.
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