James C. Ho

James Chiun-Yue Ho (born 1973) is an American lawyer and a United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

James C. Ho
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Assumed office
January 4, 2018
Appointed byDonald Trump
Preceded byCarolyn Dineen King
4th Solicitor General of Texas
In office
May 2008 – December 9, 2010
Attorney GeneralGreg Abbott
Preceded byTed Cruz
Succeeded byJonathan F. Mitchell
Personal details
Born1973 (age 46–47)
Taipei, Taiwan
EducationStanford University (BA)
University of Chicago Law School (JD)
Chinese name
Chinese何俊宇
Hanyu PinyinHé Jùnyǔ
Wade–GilesHo2 Chün4-yü3
IPA[xɤ̌ tɕŷn.ỳ]

Biography

Ho was born in Taiwan and moved to the United States with his parents as a toddler.[1]

He received his Bachelor of Arts in public policy, with honors, from Stanford University and a Juris Doctor with high honors, from the University of Chicago Law School in 1999.[1] Upon graduation from law school, he served as a law clerk to Judge Jerry Edwin Smith of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Ho has served in the United States Department of Justice, first as a special assistant to the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, and then as an attorney-advisor in the Office of Legal Counsel. He has served as a law clerk to United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and as Chief Counsel to Senator John Cornyn on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Before joining Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, Ho served as Solicitor General of Texas in the Office of the Attorney General of Texas. He then served as co-chair of the Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher's appellate and constitutional law practice group.[2]

Ho has worked as a volunteer attorney with the First Liberty Institute, a religious legal advocacy organization.[3][4] He has held multiple positions as a member of the Federalist Society since 1996.[5]

In a 2006 law review article published in The Green Bag, Ho wrote that "Birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment. That birthright is protected no less for children of undocumented persons than for descendants of Mayflower passengers."[6] In a 2011 opinion editorial published in the Wall Street Journal, Ho wrote that "Opponents of illegal immigration cannot claim to champion the rule of law and then, in the same breath, propose policies that violate our Constitution."[6][7]

Federal judicial service

On September 28, 2017, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Ho as a Circuit Judge to an undetermined seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.[2] On October 16, 2017, President Trump sent Ho's nomination to the Senate. He was nominated to the seat vacated by Judge Carolyn Dineen King, who took senior status on December 31, 2013.[8] On November 15, 2017, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[9] On December 7, 2017, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 11–9 vote.[10] On December 14, 2017, the full United States Senate voted 53–43 to confirm Ho's nomination.[11] He received his judicial commission on January 4, 2018.

In July 2018, NPR wrote that "Ho has shaken up the staid world of appellate law by deploying aggressive rhetoric in cases involving guns, abortion rights and campaign finance regulations." According to NPR, "Critics say Ho is writing op-ed columns, not legal opinions. Friends and former colleagues said he's an intellectual engaging with ideas."[12]

Notable rulings

On April 18, 2018, in his first written opinion from the bench, Ho dissented from a denial of a rehearing en banc in a case regarding a limit on campaign contributions.[13][14][15]

On June 4, 2020, Ho sided with the majority in a 3-0 decision regarding voting rights in the State of Texas.[16] The decision sided with state officials, on a motion for stay of the district court's grant of a preliminary injunction, holding that the COVID-19 Pandemic and fears of infection from the disease are not, without more, valid reasons to receive a mail-in ballot in the upcoming July runoff and November general elections. The case, brought forth by the Texas Democratic Party, remains pending for merits briefing and an oral hearing.[17] On June 16, 2020, however, the Plaintiffs-Appellees filed a petition for cert in the U.S. Supreme Court.[18] They also requested in an emergency motion that the SCOTUS vacate the Fifth Circuit order that stayed the district court injunction, which had opened the way for all Texas voters to apply to vote by mail during the ongoing pandemic, not just those aged 65 and older or covered by another statutory exception to in-person voting.[19]

References
  1. Council, John (December 14, 2017). "Senate Confirms Former Texas Solicitor General James Ho to Fifth Circuit". Texas Lawyer. New York City. Retrieved December 14, 2017.
  2. " President Donald J. Trump Announces Eighth Wave of Judicial Candidates" White House, September 28, 2017 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. "First Liberty Institute Congratulates Its Former Volunteer Attorney James C. Ho on His Judicial Confirmation". December 14, 2017. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
  4. Marcus, Ilana; Eaton, Joshua; Timms, Ed (March 20, 2020). "Federal judges: From political players to lifetime appointments". Roll Call. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  5. "Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees" (PDF). judiciary.senate.gov. Retrieved June 30, 2018.
  6. Paul, Deanna (October 30, 2018). "Trump wants to end birthright citizenship. A judge he appointed says he can't". Washington Post. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
  7. Ho, James (January 5, 2011). "Birthright Citizenship and the 14th Amendment". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on May 9, 2017. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
  8. "Fifteen Nominations Sent to the Senate Today" White House, October 16, 2017
  9. United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Nominations for November 15, 2017
  10. Results of Executive Business Meeting – December 7, 2017, Senate Judiciary Committee
  11. U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 115th Congress – 1st Session United States Senate Vote Summary: Vote Number 317, United States Senate, December 14, 2017
  12. Johnson, Carrie (July 26, 2018). "Legal Opinions Or Political Commentary? A New Judge Exemplifies The Trump Era". NPR. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  13. "IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT No. 16-51366: Donald Zimmerman v. City of Austin, Texas" (PDF). April 18, 2018. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
  14. Stern, Mark Joseph (April 24, 2018). "Trump Judge Judges Trumpily". slate.com. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
  15. Smith, Bradley (May 2, 2018). "Trump-appointed judge delivers fantastic campaign finance opinion in first ruling". The Washington Examiner. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
  16. "IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT No. 20-50407: Texas Democratic Party, et al. v. Greg Abbott, et al" (PDF). June 4, 2020. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  17. "Federal appeals court extends block on voting-by-mail expansion in Texas". June 4, 2020. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  18. Docket for TDP v. Greg Abbott. "U.S. Supreme Court".
  19. Ura, Alexa (June 16, 2020). "Texas Democrats ask U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on voting by mail". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
Legal offices
Preceded by
Ted Cruz		 Solicitor General of Texas
2008–2010		 Succeeded by
Jonathan F. Mitchell
Preceded by
Carolyn Dineen King		 Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
2018–present		 Incumbent
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