Obama nominates Judge Lucy Koh to federal bench

If confirmed, Koh would become the first Korean American federal court judge in the country.

On Wednesday, President Obama nominated Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Lucy H. Koh for a federal judgeship in California's Northern District Court. If confirmed, she would become the first Korean American federal court judge in the country.

Obama nominates Santa Clara County Judge Lucy Koh to federal bench.

Although relatively new to the state court bench, Koh has an extensive background in federal practice as a lawyer, working as a federal prosecutor in Los Angeles and Washington. She also was a partner at the McDermott, Will and Emery law firm in Palo Alto, representing technology companies in patent, trade secret and commercial civil cases.

Before her state court appointment, Koh was an assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California from 1997 to 2000. Previously, she served as special assistant to the U.S. deputy attorney general in Washington, D.C., and special counsel for the U.S.