New Orleans City Attorney confirmed to federal bench

The U.S. Senate has confirmed New Orleans City Attorney Nannette Jolivette-Brown to the federal bench in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New Orleans.

U.S Senator Mary Landrieu (D, La.) recommended Jolivette-Brown as a nominee to President Barack Obama. Jolivette-Brown was confirmed unanimously along with four other nominees via a Senate voice vote.

Jolivette-Brown will be the first African-American woman to serve as a federal judge in Louisiana. Landrieu and David Vitter (R, La.) both backed Jolivette-Brown's nomination.

In a statement, Landrieu said that the confirmation confirms Jolivette-Brown "is well equipped with substantial and vast legal experience to serve our state on the federal bench."

According to Mayor Mitch Landrieu's office, New Orleans executive counsel Richard Cortizas will replace Jolivette-Brown as city attorney.

The Senate is expected to also confirm Napoleonville judge Jane Margaret Triche-Milazzo to an Eastern District bench in the coming days.