About the Author
Jacqueline H. Nguyen is a Circuit Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She was nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in a 91–3 vote on May 7, 2012. Judge Nguyen is the first and currently the only Asian American woman on the federal Court of Appeals. Prior to her elevation, Judge Nguyen was a trial judge for nearly ten years. From 2009 to May 2012, she served as a district judge on the U.S. District Court, Central District of California. Prior to that, she served for seven years as a judge on the Los Angeles Superior Court. Before she began her judicial career, Judge Nguyen was a federal prosecutor, serving as an Assistant United States Attorney from 1995 to 2002 in the United States Attorney’s Office, Central District of California, including a two-year stint as a Deputy Chief in the General Crimes Section. Judge Nguyen began her legal career in private practice at the law firm of Musick, Peeler & Garrett in Los Angeles, from 1991 to 1995. Judge Nguyen received her A.B. from Occidental College in 1987. She also received an honorary degree for a year-long study at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan, from 1985 to 1986. Judge Nguyen received her J.D. from UCLA Law School in 1991. Judge Nguyen has been active in the legal community, particularly the Asian Pacific Islander American community, for many years. She has served on the board of various bar associations, including the Women Lawyers’ Association of Los Angeles County, the Southern California Chinese Lawyers’ Association and the Japanese American Bar Association. Judge Nguyen cofounded and served as President of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association from 1999 to 2000. Judge Nguyen was born in Dalat, Vietnam. She came to the United States at the age of ten with her family when South Vietnam fell to Communist forces. Judge Nguyen has two children.
