Iain D. Johnston

Iain David Johnston (born 1965) is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and a former United States magistrate judge of the same court.

Education
Johnston earned his Bachelor of Science, cum laude, from Rockford University in 1987 and his Juris Doctor, cum laude, from UIC John Marshall Law School in 1990.

Career
Johnston served as a law clerk to Judge Philip Godfrey Reinhard of the Illinois Second District Appellate Court and then the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. He was a unit supervisor for the Office of the Illinois Attorney General and in private practice at Altheimer & Gray, Holland & Knight, and Johnston Greene. He also serves as an adjunct professor at UIC John Marshall Law School.

Federal judicial service
Johnston served as a United States magistrate judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, from May 3, 2013 to September 23, 2020 when he became a district judge.

On February 5, 2020, President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Johnston to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. On February 12, 2020, his nomination was sent to the Senate. President Trump nominated Johnston to the seat vacated by Judge Frederick J. Kapala, who assumed senior status on May 10, 2019. A hearing on his nomination before the Senate Judiciary Committee was held on June 24, 2020. On July 30, 2020, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 17–5 vote. On September 16, 2020, the United States Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by an 81–15 vote. On September 17, 2020, his nomination was confirmed by a 77–14 vote. He received his judicial commission on September 23, 2020. He was sworn in on September 29, 2020.

Membership
He was a member of the Federalist Society from 1995 to 1998.