[1] On February 25, 1985, Holderman was nominated by President Ronald Reagan to a new seat on the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois created by 98 Stat.
[2][1] In July 2010 the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ordered him removed from a drug trial underway, concluding that he had shown "unreasonable fury" towards the prosecution,[3][4] the second time in a decade he had been chastised by the Seventh Circuit for improper hostility towards the government.
[5] Holderman enjoys teaching, and has taught classes at many Illinois law schools.
Holderman is particularly interested in intellectual property litigation, and teaches trial advocacy courses focusing on patent, trade secret, and copyright cases.
He also teaches courses related to international IP rights and enforcement.