Amir Ali

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

Amir Ali is a judge on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. He was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on February 1, 2024, and confirmed by the United States Senate on November 20, 2024, by a vote of 50-49.^[1]^[2] To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.

The United States District Court for the District of Columbia is one of 94 U.S. District Courts. They are the general trial courts of the United States federal courts. To learn more about the court, click here.

Prior to joining the court, Ali was a president and executive director of the MacArthur Justice Center and director of the Criminal Justice Appellate Clinic at Harvard Law School .^[3]

Judicial nominations and appointments

United States District Court for the District of Columbia (2024-present)

See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

On February 1, 2024, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Ali to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.^[2]^[3] Ali received commission on November 22, 2024.Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag |style="background: #00AF8C; color: white" |49 |style="background: #00AF8C; color: white" |1 |}

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Ali's nomination on February 8, 2024. Ali was reported to the full Senate on March 7, 2024, after a 11-10 committee vote.^[4]

Nomination

On January 10, 2024, President Joe Biden (D) announced his intent to nominate Amir Ali to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. The president officially nominated Ali on February 1, 2024.^[2]Click here for a list of other nominees who have been nominated by President Joe Biden.

The American Bar Association (ABA) rated Ali well qualified.^[5] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.

Ali was nominated to replace Judge Beryl A. Howell, who assumed senior status on February 1, 2024.^[6]

Biography

Early life and education

Ali was born in 1985 in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. He earned a B.S.E. from the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada in 2008 and a law degree from Harvard Law School in 2011.^[3]^[1]

Professional career

2024-present: Judge, United States District Court for the District of Columbia
2023-2024: Adjunct professor, University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law
2018-2024: Lecturer and clinical co-director, Harvard Law School
- 2023-2024: President and executive director
- 2021-2023: Executive director
- 2020-2021: Deputy director, Supreme Court and appellate program
- 2020-2021: Director, Washington, D.C. office
- 2017-2020: Supreme Court and appellate counsel
2017-2024: Roderick and Solange MacArthur Justice Center, Washington, D.C.
2018: Adjunct professor, Georgetown University Law Center
2013-2017: Private practice, Washington, D.C.
2012-2013: Law clerk, Hon. Marshall Rothstein, Supreme Court of Canada
2011-2012: Law clerk, Hon. Raymond C. Fisher, United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit^[3]^[1]

About the court

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.

Noteworthy cases

Order reinstating federal foreign aid grants challenged before Supreme Court (2025)

See also: Supreme Court emergency orders related to the Trump administration, 2025

On January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump (R) issued Executive Order 14169: Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid, which sought to implement a 90-day pause on foreign aid, pending a review of programs receiving funds.^[7] On February 10, 2025, the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition and the Journalism Development Network, two nonprofit organizations that received foreign aid federal grants, filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia against the federal government over the executive order. In the lawsuit they said it was outside the president's authority to freeze congressionally appropriated funds and violated the Administrative Procedure Act. The plaintiffs asked the court to prevent the federal government from enforcing the executive order and reinstate the foreign aid funds that were suspended.^[8]

Judge Amir Ali temporarily paused part of the executive order on February 13, 2025, saying the government could not suspend foreign aid funding that existed before January 20, 2025.^[9] The federal government appealed the order to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which dismissed the appeal on February 26.^[10]

The federal government filed an emergency application with the Supreme Court, saying the lower court lacked jurisdiction to order the government to resume payments and the order was overbroad.^[11] On March 5, 2025, the Supreme Court denied the application, with Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, and Brett Kavanaugh dissenting.^[12]