president obama nominates judge jacqueline nguyen to 9th circuit court of appeals

This week, President Obama nominated Judge Jacqueline H. Nguyen to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. If confirmed by the Senate, Nguyen would be the first Vietnamese American judge to serve on a federal appellate court: Obama taps L.A. federal judge Nguyen for 9th Circuit.

As we all know, the President's prior choice for the 9th Circuit, then-law professor Goodwin Liu, did not go over so well with Republican lawmakers who successfully blocked his nomination before he withdrew last May. Let's hope Judge Nguyen fares better.

Here's the White House's press release, with more information on Judge Jacqueline H. Nguyen: President Obama Nominates Judge Jacqueline H. Nguyen to Serve on the United States Court of Appeals.

Judge Jacqueline H. Nguyen: Nominee for the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Judge Jacqueline H. Nguyen has served as a United States District Judge in the Central District of California in Los Angeles since 2009. Judge Nguyen was born in Dalat, Vietnam, and in 1975, she fled the country as a girl along with her family as Saigon was in the process of falling during the latter stages of the Vietnam War. Her family was placed at a refugee camp in Camp Pendleton, California, where they lived in a tent city for over one month before settling in the Los Angeles area. She received her A.B. from Occidental College in 1987, and her J.D. from UCLA School of Law in 1991. Judge Nguyen began her legal career at the law firm of Musick, Peeler & Garrett LLP, where she was a litigation associate from 1991 to 1994. In 1995, she joined the United States Attorney’s Office in the Central District of California, serving as an Assistant United States Attorney in the criminal division. There, she worked as a federal prosecutor in both the General Crimes and Public Corruption and Government Fraud sections, and was a member of the office’s Organized Crime Strike Force from 1999 to 2000. She served as Deputy Chief of the General Crimes section from 2000 to 2002. Judge Nguyen was appointed to the state bench as Judge of the Superior Court of the County of Los Angeles in 2002 and remained a judge on that court until she was appointed to the federal bench in 2009.

Here's the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus' statement on Judge Nguyen's nomination: CAPAC Chair Judy Chu Commends President on Nomination of Judge Jacqueline H. Nguyen to Federal Appellate Court.