THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

                   PRESIDENT NOMINATES ARTHUR GAJARSA
                        TO U.S. COURT OF APPEALS

The President today nominated Arthur Gajarsa to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Gajarsa, 55, is currently a partner in the Washington, D.C. law firm of Joseph, Gajarsa, McDermott & Reiner, where he maintains a diverse civil practice in corporate law, international trade, commercial litigation and the representation of Native American Tribes in water rights, land claims and gaming matters. Gajarsa began his career as a patent examiner with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He served as a law clerk for Judge Joseph McGarraghy on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia and worked as an attorney in the Department of Defense specializing in defense systems analysis and intellectual property rights. Before entering private practice, he was special counsel to the Secretary of Interior and Commissioner of Indian Affairs at the Department of the Interior.

Gajarsa is a member of the Federal Circuit Bar, the Federal Bar Association and American Judicature Association. He is also a member of the American Bar Association and participates in the Administrative Law, Business Law, Litigation and Antitrust Sections. Long active in the Italian-American community, Gajarsa has served as both President and General Counsel of the National Italian American Foundation. Gajarsa also has made considerable contributions to the community through his participation as a board member of numerous civic and educational organizations, including the Georgetown University Board of Regents, the Rensselaer Neuman Foundation, the Institute for Contemporary Culture, the Foundation For Improving Understanding of the Arts, and Outward Bound.

Gajarsa earned his undergraduate degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a masters in economics from Catholic University, and his law degree from Georgetown Law Center. He and his wife, Melanie, have five children and reside in Potomac, Maryland.

Upon confirmation, Gajarsa would become one of 12 judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which has nationwide jurisdiction over appeals involving patents, trademarks, and intellectual property, appeals from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, the Court of International Trade, the International Trade Commission, the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Court of Veteran Appeals, the Board of Contract Appeals, and from federal sector labor arbitrations.

-30-30-30-