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Richard Seeborg
2010 - Present
15
Richard Gus Seeborg is the chief judge with the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. He was nominated by President Obama.
Seeborg became chief judge on February 1, 2021, succeeding Phyllis Hamilton, who assumed senior status.[1]
Early life and education
Judge Seeborg earned his B.A. from Yale College in 1978 and his J.D. degree in 1981 from the Columbia University School of Law.[2]
Professional career
- 1998-2001: Private Practice, Palo Alto, California
- 1991-1998: Assistant U.S. Attorney, Northern District of California
- 1982-1991: Private Practice, San Francisco, California
- 1981-1982: Law clerk, Hon. John Pratt, U.S. District Court, District of Columbia[2][3][4]
Judicial career
Seeborg served as a federal magistrate judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of California from 2001 to 2009.[5]
Northern District of California
 |
| Nominee Information |
| Name: Richard Seeborg |
| Court: Northern District of California |
| Progress |
| Confirmed 140 days after nomination. |
 Nominated: August 6, 2009
|
| ABA Rating: Unanimously Well Qualified
|
| Questionnaire: Questionnaire |
| Hearing: September 23, 2009
|
| QFRs: QFRs (Hover over QFRs to read more) |
| Reported: October 15, 2009
|
| Confirmed: December 24, 2009
|
| Vote: Voice vote
|
Seeborg was nominated by President Obama for an Article III judgeship on the United States District Court for the Northern District of California for the seat vacated by Maxine Chesney.[2][3] The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved his nomination on October 15, 2009.[6][7] Seeborg was confirmed by the full Senate on December 24, 2009.[8]
Seeborg received a rating of Unanimously Well Qualified from the American Bar Association.[9]
Seeborg became chief judge with the court on February 1, 2021, succeeding Phyllis Hamilton, who assumed senior status.[1]
Judiciary Committee hearing
Seeborg had a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on September 23, 2009. The Committee voted to forward his nomination to the full Senate on October 15, 2009, and his nomination was confirmed on December 24, 2009.[9]
Noteworthy cases
Judge stops Trump's 'remain in Mexico' policy
- See also: United States District Court for the Northern District of California (Innovation Law Lab v. Kirstjen Nielsen, 19-cv-00807-RS)
- See also: United States District Court for the Northern District of California (Innovation Law Lab v. Kirstjen Nielsen, 19-cv-00807-RS)
Judge Richard Seeborg ruled on April 8, 2019, that the Trump administration's 'remain in Mexico' policy violates U.S. asylum law, international treaty obligations, and federal regulatory requirements. The judge issued a preliminary injunction against the policy that took effect on April 12, 2019. According to Politico, Seeborg found "the policy was not supported by federal immigration law and did not sufficiently safeguard the lives and freedom of migrants."[10]
Federal judge rules census citizenship question unconstitutional and violation of APA (2019)
U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California issued a ruling in State of California v. Ross on March 6, 2019, holding that Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross' addition of a citizenship question on the 2020 census was, in his view, unconstitutional and a violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).[11]
Click here for a full timeline of legal challenges to the citizenship question on the 2020 U.S. Census.
Facebook privacy (2010)
- See also: United States District Court for the Northern District of California (Lane vs. Facebook INC, No. C 08-3845 RS)
- See also: United States District Court for the Northern District of California (Lane vs. Facebook INC, No. C 08-3845 RS)
Judge Seeborg presided in a case over privacy issues involving the widely-used social networking site Facebook. A lawsuit was filed in 2007 over a application called Beacon that kept track of a person's purchasing habits and web browsing activity. As part of the settlement, Facebook agreed to start a nonprofit organization to advocate web privacy instead of splitting the money between 1.3 million plantiffs.[12]
See also
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Judge Seeborg's Biography from the Federal Judicial Center
- List of judges of the Northern District of California
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 United States District Court for the Northern District of California, "Chief District Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton Assumes Senior Status," February 1, 2021
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 White House Press Release "President Obama Nominates Edward Milton Chen, Dolly Gee and Richard Seeborg to Serve on the District Court Bench," August 7, 2009
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Los Angeles Times "Obama names four new federal judges for California" August 9, 2009
- ↑ FJC, "Seeborg, Richard G.," accessed December 10, 2013
- ↑ San Francisco Chronicle "Confirmation votes set for judge nominees," October 17, 2009
- ↑ Barbara Boxer Press Release "Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Los Angeles Attorney Dolly Gee for U.S. District Court," October 15, 2009
- ↑ Metropolitan News-Enterprise "Senate Committee Approves Nominees for Federal Courts," October 16, 2009
- ↑ Seeborg Biography at the Federal Judicial Center.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Judicial Nomination Materials (dead link)
- ↑ Politico, "Judge halts Trump administration’s ‘remain in Mexico’ policy," April 8, 2019
- ↑ NPR, "March 6, 2019 Opinion by U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg," March 6, 2019
- ↑ BusinessWeek "Facebook wins approval to create privacy group," March 17, 2010
| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by - |
United States District Court for the Northern District of California 2010-Present |
Succeeded by - |
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| Nominated | |||
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State of California Sacramento (capital) |
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