Detroit Native Briaunna Buckner currently clerks for Judge Robert L. Wilkins in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Photo courtesy of Jo Darby
By Sheila Pursglove
Legal News
Briaunna Buckner has racked up many impressive achievements in her academic career—and according to records, is the only Black woman in recent history to graduate from the University of Michigan Law School and clerk for two U.S. Court of Appeals judges: The first in 2021 for the Bernice B. Donald in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and currently for the Robert L. Wilkins in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Both judges are tremendous role models for Buckner. Judge Donald was the first African American female judge to serve on four of the nation’s courts. In 1982, she was elected as the first African American female to serve as judge in Tennessee; in 1988, she was appointed as the first African American female to serve as a judge in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court; in 1995, President Bill Clinton appointed her as the first African American female to serve as a judge in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee; and in 2011, President Barack Obama appointed her as the first African American female to serve as a judge in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
Judge Wilkins was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve as a judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia after serving as a public defender and law partner in one of the nation’s premier firms.
In 2014, Judge Wilkins was elevated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit by President Obama. He is only the second African American male to serve as a judge on the nation’s second highest court. The D.C. Circuit is often referred to as the “baby Supreme Court” because several of our nation’s Supreme Court justices served on this court. Judge Wilkins, along with Congressman John Lewis, played a leading role in creating the African American Museum in Washington, D.C. He recounts his journey spearheading this effort in his book: “Long Road to Hard Truth: The 100 Year Mission to Create the National Museum of African American History and Culture.”
“As a law clerk for two phenomenal judges, I have learned a great deal about the rule of law, honing my research and writing skills, and serving the judiciary with the level of meticulousness it requires. But as a woman of color, I am blessed to call both Judge Wilkins and Judge Donald my mentors,” Buckner says. “In addition to stellar credentials, they are incredible human beings and have invested tremendously in my growth as a lawyer.”
Buckner started her academic career at Martin Luther King Jr. High School in Detroit, playing basketball under legendary hoops coach William Winfield. She received a full athletic scholarship to play basketball for the Division 1 program at Jacksonville State University, where she served in freshman government, was elected to serve as a senator, and was involved in several religious and community oriented organizations.
During her junior year, Buckner—whose mother was a sergeant for the Detroit Police Department and whose father was a lieutenant in Corrections for the State of Michigan—became interested in a legal career.
“A career in law enforcement seemed like a natural path at the time,” she says. “But the summer of my junior year, I engaged deeper with the law as several trials were being nationally televised. I remember my father making an observation that none of the lawyers he saw on the television were Black women. After a short pause, he said: ‘Briaunna, you should do that; you would be great at that; you should be a lawyer.’
“At the time, I’d never met a Black female attorney. I guess, my imagination regarding my hopes and dreams only expanded to the extent of my exposure. But my father’s confidence in me and in my potential served as a catalyst for me to explore the possibilities.”
In the fall semester, Buckner enrolled in a Constitutional Law class taught by professor and Howard Law School alumna Ardie Dial, the sole Black woman on the faculty.
“That semester, I fell in love with the law and was determined to go to law school,” Buckner says.
In 2015, she graduated from Jacksonville State with a degree in criminal justice and a minor in biology—shortly after the university created The Briaunna Buckner Scholarship which awards an undergraduate or graduate student interested in increasing diversity in the legal profession.
Pregnant with twins, Buckner took a few months off to study for the LSAT. Not long after graduation, she gave birth to twin girls, Zaina and Zola; tragically Zaina, passed away after eight days.
“I was overtaken by unimaginable grief. I never anticipated, at age 23, I would lose a child,” Buckner says. “Struggling to see the finish line of this immense pain I was feeling, I decided to take a break from studying to grapple with life’s twists and turns.”
A month later, she was offered a graduate teaching position by a biology professor at JSU; and accepted with the proviso that she could pursue a master’s degree in public administration and public policy.
“I felt an MPA would teach me how to be impactful on a broader scale as I entered into law school,” she says. “I learned as much as I could by taking advantage of every learning opportunity I felt would expose me to different aspects of the legal profession or that was related to legal practice.”
She enrolled in a grant writing class to learn how to help secure funding for nonprofit organizations; interned for a litigation boutique law firm in Birmingham, Ala., to gain exposure and a deeper understanding of the courts and trial work; attended trials to study different oralist styles and techniques; and was hired as Public Affairs Coordinator by the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce, to gain a deeper understanding of advocacy. What is most impressive is that she achieved all this while teaching college level biology courses, driving four hours to Atlanta at least three nights a week for LSAT prep courses, and taking care of her infant daughter.
Launching her law school journey at the University of Mississippi School of Law, Buckner was named 1L of the Year, Bessie Young Scholar, Bradley Arant Diversity Scholar, DRI’s Diversity Scholar, received the Outstanding Student Achievement Award for highest grade in Civil Procedure, won a Trial Advocacy competition, and was named a Business Law Fellow.
After her 1L year, she transferred to the University of Michigan Law School where she graduated in 2021.
Honored with the Women’s Leadership Award for outstanding contributions, she was involved in several MLaw organizations, including the Mock Trial team; Student Funded Fellowships that served to raise financial assistance for students interested in pursuing a career in public interest; was elected to serve on the Student Senate her 2L and 3L years; helped to make a change to the Student Body’s Constitution to add a seat on the Senate for Transfer Students; served as the First African American female to be appointed the University of Michigan’s Supreme Court; was a member of the Michigan Journal of Race & Law; and was published in the Michigan Journal of Gender & Law detailing her experiences attending a Top Ten law school as a single mother.
“I loved my time at Michigan,” she says. “One of the things I loved most is what we call ‘the Michigan difference.’ There is something special about my classmates, the professors, and being in the vicinity learning with these people that is empowering, inspiring, and feels like home. There truly is no place like Michigan Law, and I was blessed to be able to experience it. Michigan really helped me identify my passion for appellate advocacy through its externship opportunities and clinics.”
Buckner had four interesting opportunities to exercise her skills: as a law clerk for a ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee she gained a behind-the-scenes look into the judicial nominations process; in Professor Evan Caminker’s Appellate Advocacy Skills & Practice class, she drafted several briefs and received top tier feedback; at MLaw’s Federal Appellate Litigation Clinic, she advocated for indigenous persons accused of a crime to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit; and as an intern for Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit, she co-authored an amicus brief urging the Michigan Supreme Court to clarify an ambiguous provision in the state’s Consumer Protection law.
“Each opportunity gave me insights into appellate advocacy and led me to develop a great respect for the courts,” she says. “The mentorships and experiences I received from these top tier attorneys are invaluable—especially as an attorney of color in a field where we are traditionally underrepresented.”
To foster more opportunities for mentorship and guidance in the appellate field, Buckner got involved in the national nonprofit Appellate Project, founded by former civil rights attorney Juvaria Khan. The mission is to empower law students of color to thrive in the appellate field. Starting as a mentee in the mentorship program, Buckner recently was appointed to the Board of Directors, serving with Supreme Court Advocate Amir Ali, Executive Director of the MacArthur Justice Center, and Dori Bernstein, who clerked for the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
“While I’ve been fortunate enough to be exposed to such amazing opportunities, I’m only getting started,” Buckner says. “When people ask what my career goals are, I truly don’t have an answer because the goal has always been to ‘add to what is already there.’ I don’t know what the legal landscape will look like, nonetheless what society will look like in ten or so years. My goal is to be what society needs at any given time so I can be effective in helping bring about change.
“Until then, I’ll read as many books as I can, learn from the brilliant lawyers and mentors that I’ve inherited along the way, and look for opportunities to be a blessing to others by using my gifts. In the words of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, ‘I have a seat at the table now, and I’m ready to work.’”
In her leisure time, Buckner volunteers with the Boys & Girls Club; and enjoys playing basketball, listening to podcasts, attending concerts and theater plays, spending time with her family, her daughter Zola, and her fiancé, Fred Durhal III, a former state representative in the Michigan House of Representatives and a current Detroit City Council member for District 7.
She plans to move back home to the Motor City after her clerkship run ends.
“I love the honesty, character, and resilience of Detroiters,” she says. “There is an essence that looms in the streets, signaling to visitors that we love our home and that there is no place greater than Detroit. Detroit taught me to bring that persona everywhere I go, whether it be Alabama, Mississippi, or D.C. There’s no place like home.”
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