Judge David Joseph
Western Louisiana U.S. District Court
David Cleveland Joseph was born in May 1977 in Dallas, Texas. He earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Oklahoma and received his Juris Doctor from Louisiana State University. He served in the Oklahoma National Guard followed by the Louisiana National Guard. He then spent three years serving in the U.S. Army, after which he served in the Army Reserves.
Joseph clerked for a Louisiana Supreme Court associate justice and a Middle Louisiana U.S. district court judge. He served in the U.S. Army’s Judge Adjutant General Corps. He became an attorney at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and then joined firms in the private practice of law. He was nominated and confirmed as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Louisiana in 2018.
President Donald Trump nominated Joseph to a judgeship at the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana in November 2019. His nomination was returned in January 2020 when the new Congress was sworn in and the president renominated him. He was confirmed by the Senate and received his judicial commission in July 2020.
In the News…
U.S. District Judge David Joseph ruled that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission overstepped its authority under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) when it issued a rule in 2024 to include abortion in conditions covered by the 2022 Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA).
The judge found that the rule violated the “major questions doctrine” that requires authorization from Congress, writing that “Congress would have spoken clearly” if abortion was intended to be included in the legislation.
Judge Joseph stated in the decision, “The record before the Court clearly establishes that the EEOC has exceeded its statutory authority to implement the PWFA and, in doing so, both unlawfully expropriated the authority of Congress and encroached upon the sovereignty of the Plaintiff States under basic principles of federalism.”
The ruling upholds conscience protections, releasing employers from having to participate in the abortion agenda by requiring them to accommodate employees taking time off to terminate their pregnancies.
Contact this Leader…
Did you pray for Judge Joseph today? You can let him know at:
The Honorable David C. Joseph
Western Louisiana U.S. District Court
800 Lafayette St., Suite 4200
Lafayette, Louisiana 70501
