Lucy H. Koh
Lucy Haeran Koh is a judge on theUnited States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. She was nominated to the court by PresidentJoe Biden (D) on September 20, 2021, and confirmed by theUnited States Senate on December 13, 2021, by a vote of 50-45.[1][2] Koh was one of 235Article III judges nominated by PresidentJoe Biden (D) and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. To see a full list of judges appointed byJoe Biden,click here.
TheUnited States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit is one of 13U.S. courts of appeal. They are the intermediateappellate courts of theUnited States federal courts. To learn more about the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit,click here.
Prior to her nomination, Koh was a judge on theUnited States District Court for the Northern District of California.[3] She was nominated by PresidentBarack Obama (D) on January 20, 2010, and was confirmed by theUnited States Senate by a vote of 90-0 on June 7, 2010.[4]
Judicial nominations and appointments
United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit (2021-present)
On September 20, 2021, PresidentJoe Biden (D) nominated Koh to theUnited States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. She was confirmed by a 50-45 vote of the U.S. Senate on December 13, 2021.[1][2] Koh received commission on December 14, 2021.[5] To read more about the federal nominations process,click here.
 |
| Nominee Information |
| Name: Lucy Koh |
| Court:United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit |
| Progress |
| Confirmed 84 days after nomination. |
 ANominated: September 20, 2021 |
| AABA Rating:Well Qualified[6] |
| Questionnaire:Questionnaire |
| AHearing: October 6, 2021 |
| Hearing Transcript:Hearing Transcript |
| QFRs:(Hover over QFRs to read more) |
| AReported: October 28, 2021 |
| AConfirmed: December 13, 2021 |
| AVote: 50-45 |
Confirmation vote
The U.S. Senate confirmed Koh by a vote of 50-45 on December 13, 2021.[1] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website,click here.
| Lucy Koh confirmation vote (December 13, 2021) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Yea | Nay | No vote | ||||||
 Democratic | 48 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
 Republican | 0 | 45 | 5 | ||||||
 Independent | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| Total | 50 | 45 | 5 | ||||||
Senate Judiciary Committee hearing
TheSenate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Koh's nomination on October 6, 2021. The committee voted to advance Koh's nomination to the full Senate on October 28, 2021.
Nomination
On September 8, 2021, PresidentJoe Biden (D) announced his intent to nominate Koh to theUnited States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. The president officially nominated Koh on September 20.[1]
Koh was nominated to replace JudgeRichard A. Paez, who is scheduled to assumesenior status upon the confirmation of his successor.[1][7]
TheAmerican Bar Association rated KohWell Qualified with one recusal.[8] To read more about ABA ratings,click here.
United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit (2016)
On February 25, 2016, Koh was nominated by PresidentBarack Obama (D) to serve on theUnited States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.[9] On January 3, 2017, Koh's nomination was returned to President Obama at thesine die adjournment of the 114th Congress.[10]
Obama commented on the nomination, saying, "Judge Lucy Haeran Koh has distinguished herself as a first-rate jurist with unflagging integrity and evenhandedness. I am grateful for her service to the state of California and look forward to adding her considerable wisdom and experience to the Ninth Circuit Court."[11]
TheAmerican Bar Association rated KohSubstantial Majority Well Qualified, Minority Qualified for the nomination.[12]
Hearings on Koh's nomination were held before theUnited States Senate Committee on the Judiciary on July 13, 2016, and her nomination was reported by U.S. Sen.Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on September 15, 2016.[13][14] On January 3, 2017, Koh's nomination was returned to President Obama at thesine die adjournment of the 114th Congress.[10]
Northern District of California (2010-2021)
On January 20, 2010, on the recommendation of Senator Barbara Boxer,President Obama (D) nominated Koh to fill a seat on theUnited States District Court for the Northern District of California.[15] She was nominated to the seat vacated whenRonald Whyte assumedsenior status.[16]
Koh was the first Korean-American district judge in United States history.[17][18]
Koh was ratedUnanimously Qualified by theAmerican Bar Association.[19]
Senate Judiciary Committee hearing
Koh had a hearing before theSenate Judiciary Committee on February 11, 2010. She received some questions from Republican SenatorJeff Sessions regarding her writings in law school where she said that minority judges must maintain the "disguise of objectivity" or face challenges. Sessions expressed concern about what that might mean about her own objectivity on the bench. Koh responded by saying that she had forgotten that she ever wrote the passage and that she "completely disagree[d] that there [was] no objectivity. Our rule of law would break down if everyone were to insert their own personal biases."[20] The Committee voted to forward her nomination to the full Senate on March 4, 2010, and on June 7, 2010, the Senate voted 90-0 to confirm Koh as a federal judge.[21][22][23]
Biography
Education
Judge Koh earned her bachelor's degree from Harvard University in 1990 and herJ.D. from Harvard Law School in 1993.[15]
Professional career
- 2021-present: Judge,United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit
- 2010-2021: Judge,Northern District of California
- 2008-2010: Judge,Superior Court of California for the County of Santa Clara
- 2000-2008: Attorney,McDermott Will & Emery
- 1997-2000: Assistant U. S. attorney,Central District of California
- 1994-1997:United States Department of Justice
- 1996-1997: Special assistant, Deputy Attorney General
- 1994-1996: Special counsel, Office of Legislative Affairs
Awards and associations
- Former member of the Board of Directors of the KoreanAmerican Bar Association of Northern California[15]
Noteworthy cases
Judge denies Apple’s request to enjoin Samsung (2014)
Apple, Inc. requested that a federal court issue a permanent injunction against Samsung Electronics, claiming Samsung violated three of its patents. The injunction would have prevented Samsung from producing several of its products. A federal judge, however, refused to issue the injunction.
JudgeLucy Koh found that, despite the fact that a jury found Samsung used three of Apple’s patents without permission in May 2014, Apple failed to make its case that it was being harmed beyond repair by Samsung’s products. Apple also failed to link the alleged harm to the infringement on its patents by Samsung.
This court battle is actually part of a larger legal battle between Apple and Samsung. There are patent infringement cases pending in U.S. courts, as well as foreign jurisdictions.
Articles:
Dismissal of suit over website's disclosure of members' HIV status (2014)
- See also:United States District Court for the Northern District of California (Doe v. SuccessfulMatch.com, 5:13-cv-03376-LHK)
- See also:United States District Court for the Northern District of California (Doe v. SuccessfulMatch.com, 5:13-cv-03376-LHK)
On April 16, 2014, Judge Koh granted SuccessfulMatch.com's motion to dismiss the plaintiffs' suit for failure to state a claim for which relief could be granted, specifically, that the website would keep private their STD- and HIV-positive statuses.[24]
In the underlying case, plaintiffs Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 joined the site PositiveSingles.com, a website operated by SuccessfulMatch.com, which was marketed toward daters with sexually transmitted diseases. They asserted that they were "lured" into joining the site by the defendant's "empathetic sounding statements." Plaintiffs claimed they were unaware of the fact that the details of their "anonymous" profiles (i.e., their STD statuses) would be available to all of SuccessfulMatch.com's users. Thereafter, plaintiffs filed aclass action lawsuit in July 2013, alleging violations of California's deceptive business practices law, as well as its Consumer Legal Remedies Act.[24]
The defendant website company filed a motion to dismiss the case, and Judge Koh granted it, noting that Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 "failed to specifically allege that they saw any of the statements that they claim [were] misleading, or how the website statements impacted their decisions to register with defendant's website." In addition, Koh wrote that the plaintiffs' claims failed due to the fact that they did not "allege how knowledge of defendant's omissions about affiliated sites would have impacted [their] decision to register for PositiveSingles.com."[24]
About the court
TheUnited States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is afederal appellate court with appellatejurisdiction. It hears appeals from all of the circuit courts within its jurisdiction and its rulings may be appealed to theSupreme Court of the United States.
The Ninth Circuit is the largest appellate court with 29 authorized judicial posts. Appeals are heard in the James R. Browning Federal Courthouse inSan Francisco, California, the Richard H. Chambers Courthouse inPasadena, California, the Pioneer Courthouse inPortland, Oregon, and the William K. Nakamura Courthouse inSeattle, Washington.
One judge of the Ninth Circuit went on to serve on theSupreme Court of the United States. JusticeAnthony Kennedy was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1988 by PresidentRonald Reagan (R).
The Ninth Circuit hasappellate jurisdiction over cases heard in one of its subsidiary districts. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law. Appeals of rulings by theNinth Circuit Court of Appeals are petitioned to theSupreme Court of the United States. JusticeElena Kagan is thecircuit justice for the Ninth Circuit.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit hasjurisdiction over thedistrict courts in the followingdistricts:
It also has appellate jurisdiction over the followingterritorial courts:
- United States District Court for the District of Guam
- United States District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands
To read opinions published by this court, clickhere.
The federal nomination process
Federal judges are nominated by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate. There are multiple steps to the process:
- The president nominates an individual for a judicial seat.
- The nominee fills out a questionnaire and is reviewed by theSenate Judiciary Committee.
- The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing with the nominee, questioning them about things like their judicial philosophy, past rulings or opinions, etc.
- As part of this process, the committee sends ablue slip to senators from the home state in which the judicial nomination was received, allowing them to express their approval or disapproval of the nominee.
- After the hearing, the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote to approve or return the nominee.
- If approved, the nominee is voted on by the full Senate.
- If the Committee votes to return the nominee to the president, the president has the opportunity to re-nominate the individual.
- The Senate holds a vote on the candidate.
- If the Senate confirms the nomination, the nominee receives a commission to serve a lifelong position as a federal judge.
- If the Senate does not confirm the nomination, that nominee does not become a judge.
See also
- United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit
- United States District Court for the Northern District of California
External links
- United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit
- Biography from theFederal Judicial Center
- United States District Court for the Northern District of California
- Superior Court of Santa Clara County
- California Courts, "Trial Court Roster"
Footnotes
- ↑1.01.11.21.31.4Congress.gov, "PN1167 — Lucy Haeran Koh — The Judiciary," accessed September 21, 2021
- ↑2.02.1The White House, "President Biden Names Seventh Round of Judicial Nominees," September 8, 2021
- ↑3.03.1Federal Judicial Center, "Biographical directory of federal judges," accessed March 29, 2016
- ↑4.04.1San Francisco Chronicle, "Santa Clara judge wins Senate confirmation," June 08, 2010
- ↑Federal Judicial Center, "Koh, Lucy Haeran," accessed December 16, 2021
- ↑With one recusal.
- ↑United States Courts, "Future Judicial Vacancies," accessed September 21, 2021
- ↑American Bar Association, "RATINGS OF ARTICLE III AND ARTICLE IV JUDICIAL NOMINEES 117TH CONGRESS," updated October 5, 2021
- ↑The White House, "Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate," February 25, 2016
- ↑10.010.1United States Congress, "PN 1186 — Lucy Haeran Koh — The Judiciary," accessed January 3, 2017
- ↑Whitehouse.gov, "President Obama Nominates Judge Lucy Haeran Koh to serve on the United States Court of Appeals," February 25, 2016
- ↑American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III Judicial Nominees: 114th Congress," accessed April 19, 2016
- ↑U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, "Nominations," July 13, 2016
- ↑U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, "Executive Business Meeting," September 15, 2016
- ↑15.015.115.2White House Office of the Press Secretary, "President Obama Nominates Five to Serve on the United States District Court Bench," January 20, 2010
- ↑San Francisco Chronicle, "Obama picks Korean American for federal bench," January 22, 2010
- ↑Mercury News, "Obama nominates Santa Clara County Judge Lucy Koh to federal bench," January 20, 2010
- ↑Politico, "Obama boosts judicial diversity," June 7, 2010
- ↑American Bar Association, "Judicial Nomination Materials: 111th Congress," accessed April 25, 2014
- ↑Mercury News, "Valley judge draws closer to elevation to San Jose federal bench," February 11, 2010
- ↑San Francisco Chronicle, "San Jose judge one step away from federal bench," March 4, 2010
- ↑Mercury News, "Senate committee votes to confirm judge to San Jose federal court," March 4, 2010
- ↑Department of Justice, "Judicial Nominations and Confirmations: 111th Congress," accessed April 25, 2014
- ↑24.024.124.2Courthouse News Service, "Judge Gives HIV Dating Website a Break," April 23, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - | United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit 2021-Present | Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - | United States District Court for the Northern District of California 2010-2021 | Succeeded by P. Casey Pitts |
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Commissioned in 2025 | |||
| Commissioned in 2024 | John Kazen •John Russell •Margaret Garnett •Cristal Brisco •Jacquelyn Austin •Gretchen Hess Lund •Micah Smith •Joshua Kolar •Karoline Mehalchick •Kirk Sherriff •Lisa Wang •David Leibowitz •Jacqueline Becerra •Julie Sneed •Melissa Damian •Kelly H. Rankin •Nicole Berner •Sunil Harjani •Leon Schydlower •Ernesto Gonzalez •Susan Bazis •Robert White •Ann Marie McIff Allen •Eumi Lee •Krissa Lanham •Eric Schulte •Camela Theeler •Angela Martinez •Jasmine Yoon •Nancy Maldonado •Meredith Vacca •Georgia Alexakis •Joseph Saporito •Amy Baggio •Stacey Neumann •Mary Kay Lanthier •Adam Abelson •Laura Provinzino •Mary Kay Costello •Dena Coggins •Kevin Ritz •Shanlyn A. S. Park •Byron Conway •Jeannette Vargas •Michelle Williams Court •Jonathan E. Hawley •April Perry •Mustafa Kasubhai •Sarah Russell •Amir Ali •Rebecca Pennell •Anthony Brindisi •Elizabeth Coombe •Cynthia Valenzuela •Anne Hwang •Brian Murphy •Noël Wise •Sanket Bulsara •Tiffany Johnson •Sparkle Sooknanan •Gail Weilheimer •Embry Kidd •Melissa DuBose •Sharad Desai •Serena R. Murillo •Benjamin Cheeks •Sarah Davenport | ||
| Commissioned in 2023 | Kai Scott •Tamika Montgomery-Reeves •Margaret R. Guzman •Daniel Calabretta •Matthew Garcia •DeAndrea G. Benjamin •Cindy Chung •Adrienne Nelson •Lindsay Jenkins •Gina Méndez-Miró •Araceli Martínez-Olguín •Jamar Walker •Ana Reyes •Jamal Whitehead •Gordon Gallagher •Matthew Brookman•Maria Araujo Kahn• James Simmons •Robert Ballou• Andrew Schopler •Jonathan Grey•Colleen Lawless •Arun Subramanian •Jessica Clarke •Robert Kirsch •Michael Farbiarz •Anthony Johnstone •Orelia Merchant •Wesley Hsu •Bradley Garcia •LaShonda A. Hunt •Nancy Gbana Abudu •Amanda Brailsford •Darrel Papillion •Jeremy Daniel •Hernan D. Vera •Julie Rikelman •Nusrat Choudhury •P. Casey Pitts •Myong Joun •Kymberly Evanson •Tiffany Cartwright •Rachel Bloomekatz •Natasha Merle •Dale Ho •Philip Hadji •Rita Lin •Brendan Hurson •Vernon D. Oliver •Matthew Maddox •Julia Munley •Brandy McMillion •Susan DeClercq •Julia Kobick •Ramon Reyes, Jr. •Ana de Alba •Kenly Kiya Kato •Mónica Ramírez Almadani •Jeffrey M. Bryan •Jamel Semper •Irma Ramirez •Richard Federico •Loren AliKhan •Brandon Long •Jerry Edwards Jr.•Sara Hill •Joseph Laroski | ||
| Commissioned in 2022 | David Herrera Urias •Gabriel Sanchez •Holly Thomas •Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong •David Ruiz •Charles Fleming •Bridget Brennan •Leonard Stark •Alison J. Nathan •John Chun •Julie Rubin •Jacqueline Scott Corley •Ruth Bermudez Montenegro •Victoria Calvert •Georgette Castner •Anne Traum •Cristina Silva •Ketanji Brown Jackson (Supreme Court) •Sarah Geraghty •Hector Gonzalez •Fred Slaughter •Jennifer Rochon •Robert Huie •Sunshine S. Sykes • Stephanie Dawkins Davis • Evelyn Padin • Sherilyn P. Garnett • Ana de Alba • J. Michelle Childs • Trina Thompson • Elizabeth Hanes • Nancy Maldonado • Nina Morrison • Gregory Williams • John Z. Lee • Sal Mendoza, Jr. • Lara Montecalvo • Florence Pan • Andre Mathis • Sarah A.L. Merriam •Jennifer Rearden • Roopali Desai • María Antongiorgi-Jordán • Camille Vélez-Rivé • Doris Pryor • Frances Kay Behm • Dana Douglas • Mia Roberts Perez • Anne Nardacci •Jeffery P. Hopkins | ||
| Commissioned in 2021 | Ketanji Brown Jackson • Zahid Quraishi •Julien Xavier Neals • Deborah Boardman • Regina Rodriguez • Candace Jackson-Akiwumi • Lydia Kay Griggsby • Tiffany Cunningham • Eunice Lee • Angel Kelley •Florence Pan •Veronica Rossman • David G. Estudillo • Sarah A.L. Merriam •Gustavo Gelpí • Christine O'Hearn •Margaret Strickland • Karen McGlashan Williams •Patricia Tolliver Giles • Toby Heytens •Michael Nachmanoff •Sarala Nagala • Beth Robinson • Omar A. Williams • Myrna Pérez • Jia Cobb • Tana Lin • Lauren King • Lucy H. Koh • Jennifer Sung • Samantha Elliott • Katherine Menendez • Mary Dimke • Linda Lopez • Shalina Kumar • Jane Beckering • Jinsook Ohta • Jennifer L. Thurston •Stephen Locher •Charlotte Sweeney •Nina Nin-Yuen Wang •Arianna Freeman •Jerry Blackwell | ||
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