Haldane Robert Mayer

Haldane Mayer
Senior Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
Incumbent
Assumed office June 30, 2010
Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
In office December 24, 1997 – December 25, 2004
Preceded by	Glenn Archer
Succeeded by	Paul Michel
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
In office June 15, 1987 – June 30, 2010
Appointed by	Ronald Reagan
Preceded by	Marion Bennett
Succeeded by	Jimmie Reyna
Personal details
Born	(1941-02-21) February 21, 1941 Buffalo, New York, U.S.
Alma mater	United States Military Academy College of William and Mary University of Virginia

Haldane Robert Mayer (born February 21, 1941 in Buffalo, New York) is a Senior United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Mayer was appointed to the United States Military Academy by Representative William E. Miller, and received a B.S. in 1963. Mayer served in the U.S. Army from 1963 to 1975. He was awarded the Bronze Star, Meritorious Service, and Army Commendation Medals, the Combat Infantryman Badge, Parachutist Badge, Ranger Tab, and Ranger Combat Badge for his service during the Vietnam War. He took leave from the Army to attend The College of William & Mary Law School, where he was editor-in-chief of the William and Mary Law Review. He graduated first in his class and received his J.D. in 1971.^[1][2]

Mayer served as Special Assistant to the Chief Justice of the United States, Warren E. Burger, for three years, and as Law Clerk to Judge John D. Butzner, Jr., of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. He was in private practice in Charlottesville, Virginia, in the 1970s, and in Washington, DC, in 1980 and 1981. He was Deputy and Acting Special Counsel at the United States Merit Systems Protection Board from 1981 to 1982.^[3] President Ronald Reagan appointed him to the United States Claims Court in 1982, where he served until his appointment, again by President Reagan, to the Federal Circuit in 1987. He served as Chief Judge of the court from 1997 to 2004. Chief Judge Glenn Leroy Archer, Jr. preceded him as chief judge and Paul Michel succeeded him.^[1][2] He was an adjunct professor at The George Washington University Law School and the University of Virginia School of Law.^[1][2][4]

Mayer took senior status on June 30, 2010.^[5]

Notable decisions

Mayer wrote a concurring opinion in Intellectual Ventures v. Symantec,^[6] that controversially argues that "(1) patents constricting the essential channels of online communication run afoul of the First Amendment; and (2) claims directed to software implemented on a generic computer are categorically not eligible for patent."^[7][8]

References