From 1983 until 1984, McConnell worked as a law clerk to Rhode Island Supreme Court Associate Justice Donald Shea. From 1984 until 1986, McConnell worked as an attorney with Mandell, Goodman, Famiglietti & Schwartz in Providence. From 1986 until 1991, he served as an associate at what now is the law firmMotley Rice. From 1991 until 2011, he was a partner and director of the Environmental practice group at Motley Rice LLC, where he worked with state and local governments, groups, and individuals in cases of personal injury, property damage and economic loss as a result of negligent environmental practices. McConnell may be most known in his legal career for helping to draft and negotiate a $264 billion, 46-state settlement in the states' lawsuit against the tobacco industry. From 1997 until 2000, McConnell investigated the case, filed the complaint and conducted discovery and motion in the case while representing many states, including the State of New York, through its attorneys general. McConnell disclosed in his questionnaire upon his nomination to federal district court that he anticipates receiving deferred compensation of $2.5 million to $3.1 million per year for every year through 2024 for his work in the tobacco settlement. McConnell was active in politics, serving as the treasurer of the Rhode Island Democratic State Committee for fourteen years, chairing David Cicilline's mayoral campaign from 2003 to 2009, and directing Rhode Island's Planned Parenthood branch for four years.
Federal judicial service
On November 17, 2008, McConnell sent a letter to U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, expressing his interest in being nominated for the vacancy on the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island that had been created by Judge Ernest C. Torres taking senior status. After interviews in February 2009 with both of his state's senators, McConnell learned in April 2009 that Reed would recommend his name to the White House for the nomination. President Obama formally nominated McConnell to the seat on March 10, 2010. On June 17, 2010 the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee recommended McConnell's nomination 13–6. On May 4, 2011, cloture was successfully invoked on his nomination in a 63–33 vote. The Senate confirmed him later that day in a 50–44 vote. He received his commission on May 6, 2011. He became Chief Judge on December 1, 2019.
Criticism of nomination
The Washington Examiner, a conservative magazine, wrote an editorial critical of McConnell for making almost $700,000 in campaign contributions to Democrats by him and his wife since 1993. The editorial in the Washington Examiner claimed he was trying to buy a federal judgeship through targeted contributions. Some Republican senators, including John Cornyn and Mitch McConnell, questioned his ability to act impartially as a judge.
