Quick Info
| Profession | Federal judge and attorney |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Date of Birth | 1976 |
| Birthplace | Seoul, South Korea |
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Bio/Wiki
| Summary | Jinsook Ohta (born Jin Sook Lee) is an American attorney and judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, serving since December 2021. She previously served as a judge of the San Diego County Superior Court. |
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| Political Party | Democratic |
| Appointing Officials | Nominated to the federal bench by President Joe Biden; appointed to the San Diego County Superior Court by Governor Gavin Newsom |
Educational Qualification(s)
| Bachelor of Arts | Yale University, 1998, magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa |
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| Juris Doctor | New York University School of Law, 2001 |
Career
| Law clerk | Clerked for Judge Barry Ted Moskowitz of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, 2001-2002 and 2007-2008 |
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| Private practice | Associate at O'Melveny & Myers in Los Angeles, 2002-2003; associate at Sheppard Mullin in San Diego, 2003-2006 |
| Academia | Assistant professor of law at Thomas Jefferson School of Law, 2006-2007 |
| California Attorney General's Office | Deputy attorney general in the consumer protection section, 2011-2019; supervising deputy attorney general, 2019-2020 |
| San Diego County Superior Court | Judge, December 2020 to December 2021 |
| U.S. District Court | Judge for the Southern District of California since December 27, 2021; nominated September 30, 2021 and confirmed by the Senate on December 17, 2021 by a 47-24 vote |
Some Lesser Known Facts
| 1. Immigrated to the United States at about age six and grew up in the Bronx and Yonkers, New York | |
| 2. Reportedly became the first Asian Pacific American woman to serve as a judge on the Southern District of California district court | |
| 3. Graduated from high school as valedictorian before attending Yale University | |
| 4. Her federal appointment also made her the first former judicial law clerk from the Southern District of California to become a district judge there |
