OUR COMMUNITY
I
n the latest episode of the
podcast FedRadio Detroit,
co-hosts Sam Dubin and
Beverly Liss sit down with
the Honorable Bernard A.
Friedman to talk about his
journey as a judge, some of his
most memorable cases and the
impact his Judaism has had on
his career.
Friedman, who was appoint-
ed by President Ronald Reagan
as a U.S. District Judge for the
Eastern District of Michigan in
June 1988, might have seemed
unlikely to make the bench in
his younger years. Friedman,
in his characteristic rapid-fire
way of speaking, describes
himself as a poor student, “the
last of his class” in high school.
Given his poor record, he was
not accepted by any university.
By chance, he stopped by the
former Detroit College of Law
(which affiliated with Michigan
State University in 1995) and
discovered it was relatively easy
to apply.
He filled out a very short
application, was admitted even
though he had not earned an
undergraduate degree and with
lots of hard work and study,
well, the rest, as they say, is his-
tory. Friedman said he probably
is the only judge to sit on a fed-
eral bench who never earned an
undergraduate degree.
“I don’t know anybody who’s
been to law school that doesn’t
close their eyes and imagine
they’re a district judge,
” he said
on the podcast before sharing a
story about how he — a lifelong
liberal Democrat — became an
“accidental Republican,
” which
led to his appointment to the
bench.
He credits the support of the
Jewish community, including
the help of Republican activist
Ed Levy and philanthropist
David Hermelin “who knew Joe
Biden who was the head of the
Judiciary Committee” for the
opportunity for the appoint-
ment.
“
At that time, it didn’t really
matter whether a judge was
Republican or Democrat,
”
Friedman said. “Now, it seems
politics is more important than
competency.
”
He spoke of the current
Supreme Court and said he’s
“seen it swing both ways,
” but
has never seen it swing so far.
“Term limits aren’t the
answer,
” he said. “It will take
time to get out of it.
”
EQUAL PROTECTION
UNDER THE LAW
Judge Friedman’s said his abid-
ing belief in equal protection
under the law played a role in
two of his more memorable
cases.
One case involved a chal-
lenge to the affirmative action
program designed to increase
diversity at the University of
Michigan Law School. In the
other case, a lesbian couple sued
to overturn Michigan’s ban on
same-sex marriage.
In the affirmative action case,
he ruled against the University
of Michigan program, issuing
what would be described as
a conservative opinion. The
other was a liberal opinion in
which he held that the ban on
same-sex marriage approved by
Michigan voters was unconsti-
tutional.
He decided both cases
on the same principle: the
14th Amendment of the U.S.
Constitution that provides for
“equal protection under the law.
”
It’s as simple as that, he said.
FEDRADIO PARTNERS
WITH THE JEWISH NEWS
Hear more about those two
cases from Judge Friedman,
who shares stories about his
life, his Judaism and his advice
for young lawyers on the latest
episode of FedRadio Detroit
—now collaborating with the
Jewish News on content and
guests.
As part of a new collab-
oration with the JN, Sam
Dubin also talks to Aaron and
Winnie Krieger, a couple mar-
ried 70 years who were recent-
ly featured in the JN’s “How
We Met” series.
Federation and the Jewish
News will collaborate on future
episodes of FedRadio Detroit,
as well, sharing stories and
bringing them to the commu-
nity via print and podcast.
Listen to the latest episode of Fed
RadioDetroit at https://myjewishdetroit.
org/category/fedradiodetroit.
He’s the main guest on the
new collaboration between
Federation and the JN: the
FedRadio Detroit podcast.
Meet Judge
Bernard
Friedman
JACKIE HEADAPOHL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
20 | AUGUST 31 • 2023
Judge Bernard Friedman