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Jennifer Sung

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Jennifer Sung
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Incumbent
Assumed office
December 20, 2021
Appointed byJoe Biden
Preceded bySusan P. Graber
Personal details
Born1972 (age 51–52)
Edison, New Jersey, U.S.
EducationOberlin College (BA)
Yale University (JD)

Jennifer Sung (born 1972) is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Early life and education

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Sung was born in 1972 in Edison, New Jersey, to a Chinese-American family.[1] She graduated from Oberlin College in 1994 with a Bachelor of Arts in politics with honors. From 1994 to 2001, Sung worked as a union organizer for the Service Employees International Union.[2] She then attended Yale Law School, where she graduated in 2004 with a Juris Doctor degree.[3]

Career

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After law school, Sung served as a law clerk to Ninth Circuit judge Betty Binns Fletcher from 2004 to 2005. From 2005 to 2007, she was a Skadden Fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law. From 2007 to 2013, she worked at Altshuler Berzon LLP in San Francisco.[3] From 2013 to 2017, she was a partner at McKanna Bishop Joffe in Portland, Oregon. From July 1, 2017 to December 20, 2021, she was a member of the Oregon Employment Relations Board.[4]

Federal judicial service

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On June 30, 2021, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Sung to serve as a United States circuit judge for the Ninth Circuit.[3] On July 13, 2021, her nomination was sent to the Senate. President Biden nominated Sung to the seat to be vacated by Judge Susan P. Graber, who announced her intent to assume senior status upon confirmation of a successor.[5] On September 14, 2021, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[6] During the hearing, Senators questioned her about her decision to sign a letter regarding Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. The letter accused Kavanaugh of being an "intellectually and morally bankrupt ideologue" and claimed that "people will die if he is confirmed".[7] Sung said she recognized that much of the letter's rhetoric "was overheated," but she did not disavow the letter or say "whether she thought Kavanaugh was indeed 'intellectually and morally bankrupt.'"[8][9][10] On October 21, 2021, the Senate Judiciary Committee failed to report her nomination by a 10–10 vote.[11][12] On November 3, 2021, the United States Senate discharged the committee from further consideration of her nomination by a 49–49 vote, with Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie.[13] On December 7, 2021, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer filed cloture on her nomination.[14] On December 9, 2021, the Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 48–39 vote.[15] On December 15, 2021, her nomination was confirmed by a 50–49 vote.[16] She received her judicial commission on December 20, 2021.[17] Sung is Oregon's first Asian Pacific American to serve on the Ninth Circuit.[18]

Notable rulings

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On September 26, 2022, Sung dissented on an en banc panel in a 8–3 decision that held that California AB 32, a law that banned private, for-profit prison and immigration detention centers within the state, was unconstitutional.[19]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  2. ^ Campbell, Braden (June 30, 2021). "Who Is Jennifer Sung, Biden's Labor-Side 9th Circ. Pick? - Law360". www.law360.com. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  3. ^ a b c "President Biden Names Fifth Round of Judicial Nominees". The White House. 30 June 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  4. ^ Bernstein, Maxine (30 June 2021). "Oregon labor lawyer, former union organizer nominated to serve as judge on federal appellate court". oregonlive. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  5. ^ "Nominations Sent to the Senate". The White House. 13 July 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  6. ^ "Nominations | United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary". Judiciary.senate.gov. 14 September 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  7. ^ Feibel, Adelaide; Fuchs, Hailey (10 July 2018). "Law students, alumni condemn Kavanaugh in open letter". Yale Daily News.
  8. ^ "Circuit Pick Apologizes Over Kavanaugh Opposition Letter (1)". news.bloomberglaw.com. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  9. ^ Bendery, Jennifer (14 September 2021). "Biden Court Pick Won't Say If Brett Kavanaugh Is 'Morally Bankrupt'". HuffPost. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  10. ^ Cassens Weiss, Debra (September 15, 2021). "9th Circuit nominee is grilled over statement calling Kavanaugh 'intellectually and morally bankrupt'". ABA Journal. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  11. ^ "Results of Executive Business Meeting – October 21, 2021" (PDF). October 21, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2022.
  12. ^ Raymond, Nate (21 October 2021). "U.S. Senate panel advances 2nd Circuit nominee, divides over 9th Circuit pick". Reuters. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  13. ^ "On the Motion to Discharge (Motion to Discharge: Jennifer Sung to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit from the Committee on the Judiciary)". United States Senate. November 3, 2021. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
  14. ^ "PN807 — Jennifer Sung — The Judiciary". Congress.gov. Retrieved 2023-07-07.
  15. ^ "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: Jennifer Sung to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit)". United States Senate. December 9, 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  16. ^ "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Jennifer Sung, of Oregon, to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit)". United States Senate. December 15, 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  17. ^ Jennifer Sung at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  18. ^ "Senate sends Biden judges to California courts as year closes. Will more follow in 2022?". The Sacramento Bee. December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
  19. ^ Pazanowski, Bernie (September 26, 2022). "California Ban on Private Prisons in State Held Unconstitutional". Bloomberg Law.
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Legal offices
Preceded by Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
2021–present 		Incumbent
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