Ferdinand Francis Fernandez (born May 29, 1937) is a Senior United States circuit judge of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * District ...

and a former United States District Judge of the

United States District Court for the Central District of California The United States District Court for the Central District of California (in case citations, C.D. Cal.; commonly referred to as the CDCA or CACD) is a Federal trial court that serves over 19 million people in Southern and Central California, m ...

Education and career

Born in

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. Its ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, Fernandez received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree from the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

in 1958, a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law in 1962, and a

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

from

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

in 1963. He was a

law clerk A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person, generally someone who provides direct counsel and assistance to a lawyer or judge by researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court. Judicial clerks often play significant ...

for Judge William M. Byrne of the United States District Court for the Central District of California from 1963 to 1964, thereafter entering private practice in Pomona, California until 1980. He was a judge of the

San Bernardino County San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 2,181, ...

State Superior Court of California from 1980 to 1985.

Federal judicial service

On July 19, 1985, Fernandez was nominated by President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

to a new seat on the

created by 98 Stat. 333. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on October 16, 1985, and received his commission on October 17, 1985. His service terminated on May 24, 1989, due to elevation to the court of appeals. Fernandez was nominated by President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

on February 28, 1989, for elevation to a seat on the

vacated by Judge Warren John Ferguson. Fernandez was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 18, 1989, and received his commission on May 22, 1989. He assumed

senior status Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...

on June 1, 2002.

Notable cases

On February 28, 2020, Fernandez dissented when the 9th circuit ruled 2-1 that Trump's administration could not force asylum applicants to wait in Mexico while their court proceedings went on. On March 11, 2020, the Supreme Court agreed with Fernandez and permitted Trump's "Remain-in-Mexico" policy to continue. On April 7, 2020, Fernandez dissented when the 9th circuit ruled 2–1, in an opinion by

Milan Smith Milan Dale Smith Jr. (born May 19, 1942) is an American attorney and jurist serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Smith's brother, Gordon H. Smith, was a Republican U.S. Senator fr ...

, that immigrants that have been detained for 6 months or more must be given bond hearings. Fernandez argued that the mode of analysis the majority used was plainly wrong.https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2020/04/07/18-16465.pdf

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fernandez, Ferdinand Francis 1937 births 20th-century American judges California state court judges Harvard Law School alumni Hispanic and Latino American judges Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Judges of the United States District Court for the Central District of California Living people People from Pasadena, California Superior court judges in the United States United States court of appeals judges appointed by George H. W. Bush United States district court judges appointed by Ronald Reagan USC Gould School of Law alumni Hispanic and Latino American lawyers

Education and career

Federal judicial service

Notable cases

See also

References

Sources