Peter Phipps testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee during his confirmation hearing to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Third Circuit, on Wednesday, June 5, 2019. Peter Phipps testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee during his confirmation hearing to be U.S. circuit judge for the Third Circuit on June 5, 2019. Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM

The Senate confirmed Peter Phipps to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on Tuesday, deepening the number of Republican appointees on that bench.

Phipps' nomination was approved 56-40, and follows the March confirmation of Paul Matey, which flipped the court to a 7-6 majority of Republican appointees.

Phipps' appeals court confirmation came on the heels of his October 2018 confirmation to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, which had sparked concerns Phipps was inexperienced for his new post. Before he became a judge, Phipps spent 15 years with the Civil Division at U.S. Department of Justice. He also spent three years as an associate at Jones Day in Columbus, Ohio, focusing on civil litigation.

While at the Justice Department, Phipps argued before the Third Circuit in National Collegiate Athletic Association v. Christie, which concerned a 2014 New Jersey law repealing certain prohibitions on sports gambling. Arguing on behalf of the DOJ, Phipps advocated for enforcing the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, which bans states from authorizing sports betting. The appellate court eventually agreed with Phipps and struck down New Jersey's law, finding that it violated PASPA.

Phipps' nomination to a Pennsylvania seat on the Third Circuit enjoyed the support of only one of his two home-state senators, Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pennsylvania.

Phipps got his J.D. from Stanford Law School and his undergraduate degree at the University of Dayton. He also served as a law clerk to Chief Judge R. Guy Cole Jr. on the Sixth Circuit.

He has taught administrative law at Duquesne University School of Law as an adjunct professor, where he was paid a $4,000 stipend for the spring semester, according to his financial disclosure.

Phipps' confirmation fills the lone vacancy on the Third Circuit, which has 14 active judgeships. He takes a seat that became vacant when Judge Thomas Vanaskie went on senior status.

In a June 5 confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Phipps' nomination was marked by sharp debate over a written question about his membership in the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal group that opposes abortion. Phipps assured Democrats that he would be able to leave his religious views in the robing room, while a handful of members argued that questioning the nominee about his membership in the group was improper.

Phipps was criticized on his lack of judicial experience during that hearing.

Read more:

Claims of Anti-Catholic Bias Spill Into Former Jones Day Associate's Confirmation Hearing

Phipps, Judge and Onetime DOJ Lawyer Who Argued Against NJ Sports Betting Law, Nominated to 3rd Circuit

Confirmation of Lowenstein's Paul Matey Flips 3rd Circuit to Republicans