[3] Born in Midland, Michigan, Ludington received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Albion College in 1976 and a Juris Doctor from the University of San Diego School of Law in 1979.
During this time the judicial nomination process was blocked by Democrats in the United States Senate, and Ludington's appointment was delayed for 1,365 days.
In 2023, the American Bar Association awarded Ludington the Honorable William D. Missouri Civility Award,[4] identifying him as the judge in the United States with the most "exceptional qualities of civility, courtesy, and professionalism toward colleagues, litigants, and the public.
Mich. 2022),[7] Ludington granted habeas relief—for the first time in his nearly 30-year tenure as a judge—to Ali Najim Al-Sadoon, who was forgotten in detention as a result of the Biden Administration's February 18, 2021 reprioritization of removable immigration detainees.
[7] Ludington found that the government had detained Al-Sadoon "not charged with any crime, for 757 days—more than 17% of his life," which was "longer than any other [habeas] petitioner—ever.