Robert Michael Dow Jr.

Robert Michael Dow Jr. (born 1965) is a United States federal judge.

Born in Madison, Wisconsin, Dow received a B.A. from Yale University in 1987, a D. Phil. from the University of Oxford in 1990, and a J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1993. He was a law clerk, Hon. Joel Flaum, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit from 1993 to 1994. He was in private practice in Chicago, Illinois from 1995 to 2007.

On July 17, 2007, Dow was nominated by President George W. Bush to a seat on the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois vacated by Charles P. Kocoras. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on November 13, 2007, and received his commission on December 5, 2007.

On December 2, 2010, Judge Dow ruled against five states (Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Minnesota, and Wisconsin), stating that five Chicago-area shipping locks will stay open despite the risk that Lake Michigan Asian carp pose to the multi-billion dollar fishing industry, saying not enough evidence was presented that indicated the danger was truly imminent. Closing the locks could undermine commerce and pose flood-control problems.

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