Florence Pan

District of Columbia Circuit
	Court of Appeals
Judgeships
	Posts: 11
	Judges: 11
	Vacancies: 0
Judges
	Chief: Sri Srinivasan
	Active judges: ; Julianna Michelle Childs, Bradley Garcia, Karen Henderson, Greg Katsas, Patricia Ann Millett, Florence Pan, Cornelia T. L. Pillard, Neomi Rao, Srikanth Srinivasan, Justin Walker, Robert Leon Wilkins; Senior judges:; James Buckley, Harry Edwards, Douglas Ginsburg, Arthur Randolph, Judith Rogers, David Sentelle, David Tatel

Nomination Tracker
Nominee Information
	Name: Florence Pan
	Court: United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
Progress
	Confirmed 118 days after nomination.
	Nominated: May 25, 2022
	ABA Rating: Well qualified
	Questionnaire: Questionnaire
	Hearing: June 22, 2022
	Hearing Transcript: Hearing Transcript
	QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more)
	Reported: July 21, 2022
	Confirmed: September 20, 2022
	Vote: 52-42

float:right;
border:1px solid #FFB81F;
background-color: white;
width: 250px;
font-size: .9em;
margin-bottom:0px;

} .infobox p { margin-bottom: 0; } .widget-row { display: inline-block; width: 100%; margin-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 1px; } .widget-row.heading { font-size: 1.2em; } .widget-row.value-only { text-align: center; background-color: grey; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.value-only.white { background-color: #f9f9f9; } .widget-row.value-only.black { background-color: #f9f9f9; color: black; } .widget-row.Democratic { background-color: #003388; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Republican { background-color: red; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Independent, .widget-row.Nonpartisan, .widget-row.Constitution { background-color: grey; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Libertarian { background-color: #f9d334; color: black; font-weight: bold; } .widget-row.Green { background-color: green; color: white; font-weight: bold; } .widget-key { width: 43%; display: inline-block; padding-left: 10px; vertical-align: top; font-weight: bold; } .widget-value { width: 57%; float: right; display: inline-block; padding-left: 10px; word-wrap: break-word; } .widget-img { width: 150px; display: block; margin: auto; } .clearfix { clear: both; }

Florence Y. Pan is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. She was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on May 25, 2022, and confirmed by the United States Senate on September 20, 2022, by a vote of 52-42.^[1]^[2] Pan was one of 235 Article III judges nominated by President Joe Biden (D) and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.

The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is one of 13 U.S. courts of appeal. They are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal courts. To learn more about the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, click here.

Prior to her confirmation, Pan was a judge on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. She was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on June 15, 2021, and confirmed by the United States Senate on September 23, 2021, by a vote of 68-30.^[3]^[4]^[5]

Pan was previously an associate judge for the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. She was appointed to the court by President Barack Obama (D) in 2009.^[6]

On April 28, 2016, President Barack Obama (D) nominated Pan to serve as an Article III federal judge on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.^[7] On January 3, 2017, Pan's nomination was returned to President Obama at the sine die adjournment of the 114th Congress.^[8]

Judicial nominations and appointments

United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (2022-present)

See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

On May 25, 2022, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Pan to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.^[1] She was confirmed by a 52-42 vote of the U.S. Senate on September 20, 2022.^[2] She received commission on September 26, 2022.^[9] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.

Confirmation vote

Pan was confirmed by a 52-42 vote of the U.S. Senate on September 20, 2022.^[10] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.

Pan confirmation vote (September 20, 2022)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	46	0	2
Republican	4	42	4
Independent	2	0	0
Total	52	42	6

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

Pan had her hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on June 22, 2022. Pan was reported to the full Senate on July 21, 2022, after a 13-9 committee vote.^[11]

Nomination

On May 25, 2022, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Pan to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Pan was nominated to replace Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, who was elevated to the Supreme Court of the United States.

The American Bar Association rated Pan Well qualified.^[12] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.

United States District Court for the District of Columbia (2021-2022)

See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

On June 15, 2021, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Pan to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. She was confirmed by the United States Senate on September 23, 2021, by a vote of 68-30.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[13] Pan received commission on September 23, 2021.^[9] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.

Confirmation vote

The U.S. Senate confirmed Pan by a vote of 68-30 on September 23, 2021.^[5] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.

Pan confirmation vote (September 23, 2021)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	47	0	1
Republican	19	30	1
Independent	2	0	0
Total	68	30	2

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Pan's nomination on July 14, 2021. The committee voted to advance Pan's nomination to the full Senate on August 5, 2021.

Nomination

On March 30, 2021, President Joe Biden (D) announced his intent to nominate Pan to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. The president officially nominated Pan on June 15.^[3]^[4]^[5]

Pan was nominated to replace Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, who was nominated to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on April 19, 2021.^[13]

The American Bar Association rated Pan Well Qualified.^[14] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.

United States District Court for the District of Columbia (2016)

President Obama nominated Pan to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia on April 28, 2016, to serve as an Article III federal judge.^[7] The American Bar Association unanimously rated Pan Qualified for the nomination.^[15]

Hearings on Pan's nomination were held before the United 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.^[16]^[17] On January 3, 2017, Pan's nomination was returned to President Obama at the sine die adjournment of the 114th Congress.^[8]

Biography

Education

Pan earned two bachelor's degrees, summa cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania in 1988. She earned a J.D., with distinction, from Stanford Law School in 1993.^[6]

Professional career

The following is a summary of Pan's professional career:^[7]

2022-present: Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
2021-2022: Judge, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
2009-2021: Associate judge, Superior Court of the District of Columbia
2007-2009: Deputy chief, appellate division, U.S. Attorney's Office
1999-2007: Attorney, U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia
1998-1999: Senior advisor, Undersecretary of Domestic Finance, United States Department of the Treasury
1996-1998: Appellate section, criminal division, United States Department of Justice
1995-1996: Bristow fellow, Office of the Solicitor General
1994-1995: Law clerk, Hon. Ralph K. Winter, United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit
1993-1994: Law clerk, Hon. Michael B. Mukasey, United States District Court for the Southern District of New York

Award and associations

Adjunct Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center
Adjunct Professor, Washington College of Law, American University
Member, Committee for the Appointment and Tenure of Magistrate Judges
Secretary of the Judicial Council, National Asian Pacific American Bar Association^[6]

About the courts

Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit

The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is a federal appellate court with appellate jurisdiction. It hears appeals from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia and its rulings may be appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States.

This court should not be confused with the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, which is equivalent to a state supreme court in the District of Columbia, or with the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, whose jurisdiction is limited by subject matter. Appeals are heard in the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Courthouse in Washington, D.C.

Eight judges of the District of Columbia Circuit went on to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States: Fred M. Vinson, Wiley Rutledge, Warren Burger, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, John Roberts, and Brett Kavanaugh.

The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has appellate jurisdiction over cases heard by the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law. Appeals of rulings by the D.C. Circuit are petitioned to the Supreme Court of the United States. Chief Justice John Roberts is the circuit justice for the D.C. Circuit.

To read opinions published by this court, click here.

District Court for the District of Columbia

District of Columbia
District of Columbia Circuit

Judgeships
Posts: 15
Judges: 15
Vacancies: 0
Judges
Chief: James E. Boasberg
Active judges: Amir Ali, Loren AliKhan, James E. Boasberg, Tanya S. Chutkan, Jia Cobb, Rudolph Contreras, Christopher Reid Cooper, Dabney Friedrich, Timothy J. Kelly, Trevor McFadden, Amit Priyavadan Mehta, Randolph D. Moss, Carl Nichols, Ana C. Reyes, Sparkle Sooknanan Senior judges: John Deacon Bates, Rosemary Collyer, Paul Friedman, Joyce Hens Green, Thomas Hogan, Beryl A. Howell, Ellen Huvelle, Amy B. Jackson, Henry Kennedy, Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, Royce Lamberth, Richard Leon, Richard Roberts, Barbara Rothstein, Emmet G. Sullivan, Reggie Walton

The United States District Court for the District of Columbia is one of 94 United States district courts. Cases dealing with the laws of the District of Columbia are heard by this court only under the same circumstances that would cause a case under state law to come before a federal court. Appeals from this court are heard by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

The court sits in the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Courthouse located on Constitution Avenue NW. The District has no local district attorney or equivalent, and so prosecutorial matters fall under the jurisdiction of the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia.

The District Court for the District of Columbia has original jurisdiction over cases filed in the District of Columbia. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.

The D.C. District Court hears federal cases within the District of Columbia. Its appellate court is the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

To read opinions published by this court, click here.

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 the Senate 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 a blue 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.

External links

   .contact_entity {font-size: 1.5em ;margin-top: 0.6em; margin-bottom: 0em;margin-right: 0.5em;}
   .contact_office { margin-top: 0.3em; margin-bottom: 0em;margin-right: 0.5em;}
   .external_links_table { width: auto !important; }
   @media (max-width:600px) {
       .contact_entity {font-size: 1.0em ;margin-top: 0.6em; margin-bottom: 0em; margin-right: 0.5em;}
       .contact_office { font-size: 0.8 em; margin-top: 0.6em; margin-bottom: 0em;margin-right: 0.5em;}  
   }

Search Google News for this topic

Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by Ketanji Brown Jackson	United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit 2022-Present	Succeeded by -
Preceded by Ketanji Brown Jackson	United States District Court for the District of Columbia 2021-2022	Succeeded by Sparkle Sooknanan
Preceded by Ketanji Brown Jackson	United States District Court for the District of Columbia 2021-2022	Succeeded by Todd E. Edelman
Preceded by -	Superior Court of the District of Columbia 2009-2021	Succeeded by -