About FERC 
Directory of Judges
Judge Charlotte J. Hardnett
Judge Charlotte Hardnett was sworn in as an Administrative Law Judge at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in May 2005. Immediately prior to joining the FERC Office Administrative Law Judges, Judge Hardnett served as an Administrative Law Judge with the Social Security Administration. She became an Administrative Law Judge at the Social Security Administration after a long career as a Federal attorney with the United States Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the Social Security Administration (SSA).
Judge Hardnett began her legal career as an Assistant Attorney General, Office of the Attorney General, State of Washington. After returning to the East Coast, Judge Hardnett was hired as a staff attorney with the Region III Office of the Chief Counsel, DHHS. That office is responsible for handling legal issues arising from DHHS activities conducted in the District of Columbia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. She advanced to the positions of Supervisory Attorney, Special Assistant to the Regional Chief Counsel, Acting Regional Chief Counsel, and Regional Chief Counsel in Region III before transferring to SSA as its Regional Chief Counsel when SSA became independent of DHHS in 1995. Before leaving the SSA Office of the General Counsel to assume a position as an Administrative Law Judge for that agency, Judge Hardnett also served as Principal Deputy General Counsel, Senior Advisor to the General Counsel, and Acting General Counsel.
As a Federal attorney, Judge Hardnett had the opportunity to litigate a number of complex class action lawsuits, some national in scope, that challenged the agencies' interpretation and application of statutes they implemented. She appeared numerous times before the Third and Fourth Circuit Courts of Appeals, as well as in a number of district courts. She had the opportunity to develop agency policy in her roles of senior attorney and manager/executive, through litigation as well as counsel.
Judge Hardnett has received a number of awards recognizing her work performance. She received the General Counsel's Exceptional Service Award, Leadership Award, Supervisory Excellence Award, and several Quality Service Awards. She received a Departmental Senior Management Citation, the Regional Director's Equal Employment Opportunity Award, and two Hammer Awards. Judge Hardnett was honored with a Presidential Rank Award, awarded by the President to career Senior Executives for exceptional long-term accomplishments and sustained commitment to excellence in public service. Candidates for the award are approved by the President after being nominated by their agency heads and evaluated by boards of private citizens.
Judge Hardnett has been a presence outside of the office, also. She served as President of the Philadelphia Region Federal Executive Board. She participated in Temple University Law School's Law-in-the-Schools program, presenting law-related programs in the public schools, including helping students present mock trials. She also served as judge in a number of law school moot court programs. She has participated in the activities of the Federal Bar Association, the National Bar Association -- Women's Division, the Warren Mitchell Bar Association, the Philadelphia Bar Association and other legal organizations. In addition, through her membership in Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, Judge Hardnett supports such community activities as tutoring elementary and middle school students, mentoring single parents attending college, visiting seniors in nursing homes, awarding scholarships to promising high school graduates, providing meals and clothes to needy families, presenting health education programs, and advancing the arts by sponsoring performing arts and visual arts shows.
