US Flag FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2025
IMAGE: "Sawtooth National Forest - Stanley, Idaho"

UNITED STATES COURTS

District of Idaho

Clerk of Court Stephen W. Kenyon

Public 2 New
U.S. Courts District of Idaho Seal
CONTINUATION OF COURT OPERATIONS

The Courts have entered General Order #464 for the continuation of Court operations during the lapse in appropriations.  


U.S. Courts Bench Bar Conference
Speakers
Joseph Pirtle

Joe Pirtle joined Bar Counsel’s office in April 2022.  Prior to serving as Bar Counsel for the Idaho State Bar, Joe was a shareholder with the law firm of Elam & Burke in Boise.

Joe is an Idaho native who spent his youth in Eagle, Twin Falls and Boise.  Before entering private practice, Joe served as a law clerk to Twin Falls County District Judge John C. Hohnhorst.  Joe received his B.S. in Business Finance from the University of Idaho in 2001 and his J.D. from the University of Idaho College of Law in 2004.

Joe was an inaugural class member of the Idaho Academy of Leadership for Lawyers, and later served on its steering committee.  He is also a past chairperson of the Idaho State Bar Litigation Section and served as a mentor for the Idaho Trial Skills Academy.  Joe currently serves on the Attorney Well Being Task Force, and previously served many years as a member of the Idaho Lawyer Assistance Program.

Jessica Gunder

Professor Jessica R. Gunder joined the University of Idaho College of Law faculty in 2017.  She received her B.A. in both Political Science and Sociology in 2003 from the University of Missouri, graduating with honors.  She then earned her J.D. in 2007 from the University of Missouri, where she was elected to membership in the Order of the Coif and Order of Barristers.  

Following law school, Professor Gunder served as a judicial clerk for the Honorable E. Richard Webber with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.  She then worked as a Trial Attorney with the Department of Justice's Consumer Protection Branch in Washington, DC, where her responsibilities included advancing both criminal prosecutions and civil litigation related to the protection of public health and safety.  Professor Gunder also worked as an Assistant United States Attorney at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Idaho, where she served as the Civil Division's Affirmative Civil Enforcement Coordinator and Civil Rights Coordinator.

Kyle Cole

Kyle Cole

Kyle is a Counsel at Perkins Coie. He defends Fortune 50 companies in high-profile premises and product liability matters involving life-changing personal injuries and wrongful death. In 2022, Kyle served as special counsel on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee regarding the nomination of the Hon. Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court of the United States. Before joining Perkins Coie, Kyle was a law clerk for the Honorable Ryan D. Nelson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the Honorable B. Lynn Winmill of the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho.

Hannah Pugh

Hannah Pugh

Hannah Pugh is an attorney at the Federal Defender Services of Idaho, where she works on appeals and trial court litigation. She also teaches advanced advocacy at the University of Idaho College of Law. Before joining FDSI, she clerked for Judge Danielle J. Forrest on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and Judge B. Lynn Winmill in the District of Idaho. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 2021.

Jeffrey Rosen

Jeffrey Rosen

Jeffrey Rosen is the president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, where he hosts We the People, a weekly podcast of constitutional debate. He is also a professor of law at the George Washington University Law School and a contributing editor of The Atlantic. He was previously the legal affairs editor of The New Republic and a staff writer for The New Yorker.

Rosen’s new book is The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America. His other books include the New York Times bestseller Conversations with RBG: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Life, Love, Liberty, and Law, as well as biographies of Louis Brandeis and William Howard Taft.

Rosen is a graduate of Harvard College; Oxford University, where he was a Marshall Scholar; and Yale Law School.

Brian Kane

Brian Kane

Selected in July 2022, Brian Kane assumed the role of executive director for the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) in September 2022.

Kane joins NAAG from the Idaho Attorney General’s Office (OAG), where he has served as chief deputy attorney general, acting as a liaison between the attorney general and state, local, and federal governments. He has been with the Idaho Attorney General’s Office since 2001 and previously held three other positions within the office. Prior to joining the Idaho OAG, Kane was an associate at Hall Farley Oberrecht & Blanton.

Kane received his bachelor’s degree in Political Science and History from the University of Idaho and his legal degree from Lewis and Clark Law School. He also served in the United States Army for 4 years, the bulk of which was with the 1st Cavalry Division in Fort Hood, Texas.


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