Kellie M. Barr Selected As United States Magistrate Judge

The Honorable Tanya Walton Pratt, Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, is pleased to announce the selection of Kellie M. Barr for the position of United States Magistrate Judge. Ms. Barr will fill the vacancy created by the October 31, 2022, retirement of Magistrate Judge Debra McVicker Lynch.

A Magistrate Judge Merit Selection Committee chaired by Sara J. Varner, First Assistant Federal Defender for the Indiana Federal Community Defenders, Inc., and consisting of 10 other attorneys and two community members reviewed numerous applications and recommended finalists for the position. The District Judges of the court interviewed the finalists and selected Ms. Barr.

Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Ms. Barr is a 2003 graduate of Indiana University – Bloomington, where she received Bachelor of Arts degrees in Psychology and Speech & Hearing Sciences and a minor in Spanish. Ms. Barr earned her law degree from the Indiana University Maurer School of Law in 2006. While in law school, she was an articles editor for the Indiana Law Journal, moot court Champion and winner of Top Brief & Oralist Honors in the Sherman Minton Moot Court Competition, and recipient of the National Order of Barristers Award. Ms. Barr was also the Chief Justice of the Sherman Minton Moot Court Board and an elected class representative for the Student Bar Association.

Upon graduation from law school, Ms. Barr served as a law clerk to then-Chief Judge John G. Baker of the Indiana Court of Appeals from 2006 – 2008. She then spent the next two years in private practice as an associate in the Litigation & Appellate Services group at Bose McKinney & Evans LLP. In 2010, Ms. Barr began service as a law clerk to the Honorable Jane E. Magnus-Stinson at the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, becoming her career law clerk in 2011. Ms. Barr left the court in 2017 to join the legal department of Indiana University Health, Inc. She was quickly promoted to positions of increasing responsibility, and since 2020 has served IU Health as Assistant General Counsel and Lead Attorney for IU Health Physicians. 

Ms. Barr is admitted to practice law in the State of Indiana, the U.S. District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. She has completed the Civil Mediation Training Program offered by the Indiana Continuing Legal Education Forum.

An active volunteer in the legal profession and wider community, Ms. Barr participates in the Southern District of Indiana’s Recruited Counsel Program, recently representing an indigent litigant in a prisoner civil rights case. She is an active member of the Indianapolis Bar Association, having served on the Professionalism Committee, the Women & Law Division Executive Committee, and completed the Bar Leader Series program.  In 2021, Ms. Barr was  recognized by the Indianapolis Bar Foundation as a Distinguished Fellow. Ms. Barr is a board member of the Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacies Global Foundation, a former Big Sister with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Indiana, and a past board member and chair of the Eskenazi Health Midtown Community Mental Health Center. Ms. Barr was also a Barrister Member of the Indianapolis American Inn of Court.   

Regarding the selection, Chief Judge Pratt commented, “My fellow district judges and I are delighted to welcome Kellie to the bench as our newest magistrate judge. During her nearly seven years as a law clerk to Judge Magnus-Stinson, our judges came to regard her as intelligent, thoughtful, and dedicated to the important work of the court. Kellie’s past experience in the federal judiciary, combined with her time in private practice and at IU Health, provide her with all the tools necessary to be an excellent magistrate judge. While we certainly will miss Judge Lynch, we are excited to know that Kellie will take up the position with earnestness and a commitment to enhancing justice in the Southern District of Indiana.”

United States Magistrate Judges are appointed by the Judges of the U.S. District Court for a term of eight years and are eligible for reappointment to successive terms. Magistrate Judges preside over many pretrial proceedings in both civil and criminal cases in federal court. A critical component of the position is conducting mediation and settlement proceedings in civil cases, helping parties settle their disputes by agreement. Ms. Barr’s appointment will be effective upon the completion of required IRS and FBI background investigations and Judge Lynch’s retirement.