David Nye (judge)  David Charles Nye (born October 10, 1958) is the Chief United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Idaho. He was a judge of the Sixth District of Idaho for ten years, preceded by twenty years of private practice in Idaho. Born in Lynwood, California, Nye attended Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1982. He attended its J. Reuben Clark Law School and earned a Juris Doctor in 1986. Nye began his legal career in 1986 in Idaho at Burley, as a law clerk to Judge George G. Granata of the state's Fifth District Court. The following year, he joined the law firm of Merrill & Merrill in Pocatello as an associate. He became a partner in 1989, specialized in medical malpractice and insurance law, and stayed with the firm until 2007. In 2007, Nye became a judge in the Sixth Judicial District and presided over civil and criminal matters for ten years. On the recommendation of U.S. Senators Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, President Barack Obama nominated Nye on April 5, 2016, to serve as a judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho. Nye was nominated to the seat vacated by Judge Edward Lodge, who took senior status on July 3, 2015. The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on his nomination on June 21, 2016, and his nomination was reported out of committee by voice vote on July 14. The nomination expired on January 3, 2017, with the end of the 114th Congress. Shortly after the 2016 election, Senators Crapo and Risch indicated that if Nye was not confirmed by year's end, they would recommend him to incoming President Donald Trump for renomination in the 115th Congress. On Thursday, April 27, 2017, Senators Crapo and Risch indicated that President Trump had signed off on renominating Nye for the same post, and his renomination was announced on May 8. Nye was unanimously rated as "well qualified" by the American Bar Association, as he had been during his prior nomination in 2016. On June 15, his nomination was reported out of committee by voice vote. The Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by a vote of 97–0 on July 10, and he was confirmed 100–0 on July 12. Nye was commissioned the same day and sworn in on August 1 in a private ceremony. He became Chief Judge on January 2, 2019, succeeding B. Lynn Winmill.