Chief Judge Pamela Pepper announced today that the district judges of the United States District Court have selected Tiffany E. Woelfel of Green Bay to serve as the next part-time magistrate judge in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, effective April 25, 2025. The Eastern District, home to some 3.4 million residents, consists of the twenty-eight counties in the eastern half of Wisconsin. The federal district court has five district judge positions (four in the Milwaukee Division and one in the Green Bay Division), three full-time magistrate judges in the Milwaukee Division and one part-time magistrate judge in Green Bay. Judge William C. Griesbach, who has served as a district judge in the Green Bay division since 2002, administered the oath to Judge Woelfel in the Green Bay federal courthouse.
Judge Woelfel grew up in Appleton, Wisconsin and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business with distinction from the University of Minnesota. After graduating college, she joined Teach for America and taught sixth grade math in Holly Springs, Mississippi for two years before attending law school. At the University of Wisconsin Law School, she was in leadership roles for various organizations including the Wisconsin Law Review, Moot Court, the Women’s Law Student Association and the Legal Assistance for Disaster Relief program. She also interned for District Judge William Conley of the Western District of Wisconsin. She graduated law school magna cum laude. After law school, Judge Woelfel served as a term law clerk for District Judge Joe B. McDade in the Central District of Illinois and then for Judge Griesbach in the Eastern District of Wisconsin. She entered private practice in the Green Bay office of the firm then known as Davis Kuelthau, now known as Amundsen Davis. In February 2024, she was promoted to partner. She practices civil litigation, including litigation relating to a wide range of contract disputes, construction issues and intellectual property infringement. She also provides labor and employment counseling. Because the magistrate judge position is part-time, Judge Woelfel will continue her litigation practice while performing her duties as a magistrate judge.
Outside of work, Judge Woelfel is active with various local and state bar organizations and local nonprofits. She’s been recognized as a Future 15 recipient by the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce (2020) and the Greater Green Bay Chamber (2024), as well as one of Insight Publication’s 40 Under 40 (2023). She was invited to join the Wisconsin Law Foundation as a fellow.
The Green Bay Division’s part-time magistrate judge presides over pretrial hearings in felony criminal cases. Other duties include reviewing search and arrest warrants, conducting mediations and presiding over citizenship naturalization ceremonies. Magistrate judges are selected through a process involving a Merit Selection Panel composed of prominent members of the community, seven of whom are attorneys. The Merit Selection Panel reviewed multiple applications, conducted interviews and recommended finalists to the district judges, who selected Judge Woelfel. Part-time magistrate judges serve renewable terms of four years.
Chief Judge Pepper stated, “The court is excited to welcome Judge Woelfel to this new stage of her court career. She is uniquely suited to the position, having previously been part of the federal court in the roles of intern and law clerk and having been active in the Eastern District of Wisconsin Bar Association. She is a life-long member of the greater Green Bay community. She will do an outstanding job as the Green Bay Division’s magistrate judge. The court also wishes to publicly thank the Merit Selection Panel, chaired by Attorney Daniel Flaherty. The panel’s yeoman work is a credit to the panelists’ commitment to the public mission of the District Court.” The other members of the Merit Selection Panel were Scott Hansen, Jackie Herd-Barber, Michelle Jacobs, Vada Lindsey, Patrick Murphy, T. Wickham Schmidt, Thomas Shriner, Jr. and Julie Wilson.