http://www.dccourts.gov/dccourts/docs/DCSC_Bio_Motley.pdf
THE HONORABLE THOMAS J. MOTLEY
ASSOCIATE JUDGE
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Judge Thomas John Motley was appointed to the Superior Court of the District of
Columbia in 2000 by President William Jefferson Clinton.
Judge Motley was born in Washington, D.C., and spent most of his childhood in
Cheraw, South Carolina. Judge Motley received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy
from Columbia College in 1976. He received his law degree in 1979 from Harvard Law
School, where he was a staff editor for the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law
Review. The following year, Judge Motley served as a law clerk to Judge Robert F. Collins
of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
In 1980, Judge Motley joined the District of Columbia law firm of Steptoe &
Johnson. After two and a half years in private practice, he entered public service, becoming
an Assistant United States Attorney in the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of
Columbia in 1983.
Over the next fifteen years, Judge Motley served with distinction in nearly every
section of the United States Attorney’s Office, trying over 60 cases in both local and federal
court, including cases involving charges of robbery, murder, bribery, perjury, mail fraud,
and conspiracies to commit government fraud. He served the majority of his tenure in the
Office in the Public Corruption/Government Fraud Section, where he was primarily
responsible for investigating and prosecuting violations of federal criminal laws adversely
affecting the integrity of both federal and local governments. As a line Assistant U.S.
Attorney, Judge Motley received eight Department of Justice Special Achievement Awards
and, in 1996, he received the Department of Justice Director’s Award, one of the highest
honors presented to an Assistant United States Attorney. In 1997, Judge Motley was
appointed Senior Litigation Counsel and later appointed the Acting Chief of the Public
Corruption/Government Fraud Section of the United States Attorney's Office.
In January 1998, then United States Attorney Wilma A. Lewis appointed Judge
Motley to the position of Principal Assistant United States Attorney, making him the
second-in-command of the largest United States Attorney’s Office in the country, with
nearly 340 attorneys and an equal number of support personnel. In this position, he
participated in and contributed to all major decisions regarding policies, initiatives,
personnel, supervision and evaluation of major criminal and civil cases in the office.
Judge Motley received numerous awards throughout his tenure at the United States
Attorney’s Office. In 1996, then United States Attorney Eric H. Holder, Jr., presented Judge
Motley with the Harold J. Sullivan Award, annually awarded by the Assistant United States
Attorneys Association to the Assistant United States Attorney who “best exemplifies selfless
devotion, personal courage, professional fairness, and trial excellence.†In 1999, United
States Attorney Lewis presented Judge Motley with the STAR (Special Thanks for
Achieving Results) Award, in recognition of his contributions as Principal Assistant.
Judge Motley has been an active member of the Thurgood Marshall Inn of Court
since its founding in 1990. He was a member of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of the National
Capital Area for ten years, and in 1995, was recognized as the National Big Brother of
the Year. As a former member of the Board of Directors of the local organization, Judge
Motley encouraged others to become Big Brothers and to become more involved in our
community.
Judge Motley was sworn in as an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the
District of Columbia, on October 27, 2000, and has presided over matters on the juvenile,
paternity & support, mental health and felony II calendars. He currently presides over
domestic violence matters.
