WASHINGTON, D.C. – President Joe Biden announced Wednesday his intent to nominate three individuals to federal district courts – all of whom are extraordinarily qualified, experienced and devoted to the rule of law and our Constitution.

The nominations will then  go before the U.S. Senate for confirmation.

The list includes Grahamsville native Elizabeth C. (Beth) Coombe, who was nominated for the United States District Court, Northern District of New York.

Ms. Coombe received her J.D., cum laude, from the University of Michigan Law School in 1992 and her B.A., summa cum laude, from Hamilton College in 1989.

Ms. Coombe is also a 1985 Tri-Valley Central School alumna.

She is the daughter of Richard I. and Phyllis ‘Penny’ Coombe of Grahamsville.

U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand applauded President Biden for nominating Elizabeth C. Coombe to serve on the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York. Gillibrand recommended Ms. Coombe to President Biden earlier this year.

“I am proud and grateful that President Biden has nominated Elizabeth C. Coombe to serve on the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, at my recommendation,” said Senator Gillibrand. 

“Ms. Coombe is an accomplished trial lawyer with decades of experience in the U.S. Attorney’s office and expertise in complex criminal, civil, national security, and administrative matters,”  Gillibrand said. 

Sullivan County Bar Association President Timothy McCausland said. “Sullivan County has a long and storied history of jurists appointed to high positions in our courts. The Bar Assn. congratulates Elizabeth, who will be continuing in our proud tradition, on her soon-to-be confirmed appointment.”

The Northern District of New York encompasses 32 counties in Northern and Central New York, covering an area of more than 30,000 square miles. It is home to approximately 3.4 million people, including the cities of Albany and Syracuse.

The Northern District court locations include Albany, Binghamton, Plattsburgh, Syracuse and Utica.

There are 94 Districts in the United States and 4 in New York state.

Elizabeth C. Coombe

Elizabeth C. Coombe has served as the First Assistant United States Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York since 2018. 

She joined the Office in 2003 and previously served as Chief of its Criminal Division from 2014 to 2018. Earlier in her career, Ms. Coombe served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia from 1998 to 2003; a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch from 1996 to 1997; and a staff attorney in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Enforcement Division from 1994 to 1996. 

She served as a law clerk for Judge Diana E. Murphy on the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota from 1992 to 1994. 

The Coombe family has a long history of public service in Sullivan County and beyond.

Richard Coombe, Elizabeth’s father, began his career in public service at age 25 when he was elected as a Town of Neversink councilman.

He went on to serve in the New York State Assembly for 10 years then ran the Watershed Agriculture Council for another decade.

Coombe was then appointed by President George W. Bush to run the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service for five years.

His wife, Phyllis, served on the SUNY Sullivan board of trustees for 25 years.

In 2008, he assumed the role of county GOP chairman.

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