title: Gilbert S. Merritt Jr.
text: Gilbert Stroud Merritt Jr. (January 17, 1936 – January 17, 2022) was an American lawyer and jurist. He was a Senior United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Merritt Jr. was nominated to the court by President Jimmy Carter. He was judge on the court from 1977 through 2001 and was Chief Judge from 1989 through 1996. Merritt Jr. was born in Nashville, Tennessee.
  
  In 1993, when Byron White retired from the Supreme Court, he was seen as a possible replacement pick by President Bill Clinton. Ruth Bader Ginsburg was the final pick.
  
  Merritt Jr. died on January 17, 2022 in Nashville on his 86th birthday.
  
  References
  
  1936 births
  2022 deaths
  Lawyers from Nashville, Tennessee
  American judges
  Politicians from Nashville, Tennessee
  US Democratic Party politicians