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Updated February 19th, 2020 at 19:31 IST

Sri Srinivasan becomes first Indian-American to lead powerful US federal court

Judge Sri Srinivasan, who was appointed during the Obama administration, became the first person of South Asian descent to lead a powerful federal circuit.

Reported by: Kunal Gaurav
Sri Srinivasan
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Indian-American Sri Srinivasan donned that mantle of the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the DC circuit which is considered next only to the US Supreme Court. Srinivasan, who was appointed during the Obama administration, became the first person of South Asian descent to lead a powerful federal circuit.

"History being made on the DC Court of Appeals. Congratulations, Judge Srinivasan!" said Senator Mark Warner.

US Federal Communications Commission Chair Ajit Pai congratulated Judge Srinivasan calling it a milestone for the India-American/Kansan community. Pai quipped that it is yet another piece of evidence his family can use to say he is “underachieving”. 

Read: US Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Over Transgender Pronoun Dispute

Succeeded Judge Merrick Garland

Judge Srinivasan, who has succeeded Judge Merrick Garland, was appointed to the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in May 2013. The 52-year-old judge has already been considered for a seat in the Supreme Court twice. Born in Chandigarh, Srinivasan completed his B.A. from Stanford University and received Juris Doctor (J.D) degree from Stanford Law School before pursuing an M.B.A from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Read: Members Of Lower Judiciary Not Eligible For District Judges By Direct Recruitment: SC

Srinivasan served as a law clerk to Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III of the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, a Bristow Fellow in the Office of the US Solicitor General, and as a law clerk to US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor after graduation. He served as an Assistant to the Solicitor General from 2002 to 2007 and then returned to law firm O’Melveny & Myers, which he had joined in 1998. He became chair of the firm’s appellate before serving as the Principal Deputy Solicitor General of the United States.

Last week, the White House announced the decision of appointing an Indian-American law practitioner, Saritha Komatireddy, as the judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Komatireddy is a prosecutor and she teaches law at the Columbia Law School in New York. Earlier, she had served as a clerk under the former judge of the same district, Brett Kavanaugh. 

Read: Hillary Clinton Hits Back At Trump For 'intimidating' Judge Over Stone's Case

Read: India-American Saritha Komatireddy Appointed As Judge In US District Court

(With PTI inputs)

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Published February 19th, 2020 at 19:31 IST

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