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John Byron Owens (born 1971) is an American judge and lawyer who serves as a
On August 1, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Owens to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He filled the seat that was vacated by Judge Stephen S. Trott, who assumed
United States circuit judge
In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. ...
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 ...
.
Early life and education
Owens was born inWashington, D.C.
)
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, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
in 1971, and grew up in Northern California. He is the grandson of Harold Agnew.
Owens graduated from the University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...
with high distinction. While an undergraduate, Owens worked as a marketing assistant for the Golden State Warriors. He then attended Stanford Law School
Stanford Law School (Stanford Law or SLS) is the law school of Stanford University, a private research university near Palo Alto, California. Established in 1893, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world. Stanford La ...
, where he was an editor of the ''Stanford Law Review
The ''Stanford Law Review'' (SLR) is a legal journal produced independently by Stanford Law School students. The journal was established in 1948 with future U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher as its first president. The review produces s ...
''. He graduated in 1996 ranked first in his class with a Juris Doctor degree with distinction.
Legal career
After law school, Owens was a law clerk for Judge J. Clifford Wallace of theUnited 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 ...
from 1996 to 1997 and for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Joan Ruth Bader Ginsburg ( ; ; March 15, 1933September 18, 2020) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1993 until her death in 2020. She was nominated by Presiden ...
of the U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
from 1997 to 1998. Owens then worked as a trial attorney for the United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United Stat ...
's Office of Consumer Litigation. From 2000 until 2001, he served as a litigation associate at the law firm O'Melveny & Myers in Washington, D.C. From 2001 until 2004, he served in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California as an Assistant United States Attorney. In 2004, he transferred to the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of California
The United States District Court for the Southern District of California (in case citations, S.D. Cal.) is a federal court in the Ninth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are app ...
, where he served until 2012, serving first as an Assistant United States Attorney from 2004 until 2008, then as the deputy chief of the major frauds section from 2008 until 2010 and finally as the chief of the criminal division from 2010 until 2011. He has appeared on the television show American Greed.
From January 2012 until April 2014, Owens was a litigation partner in the Los Angeles office of Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP.
Federal judicial service
On August 1, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Owens to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He filled the seat that was vacated by Judge Stephen S. Trott, who assumed senior status
Senior status is a form of semi- retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of service as a federal judge must be at leas ...
on December 31, 2004. On January 16, 2014 his nomination was reported out of committee to the full Senate by a voice vote
In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by responding vo ...
. On March 26, 2014, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid
Harry Mason Reid Jr. (; December 2, 1939 – December 28, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Nevada from 1987 to 2017. He led the Senate Democratic Caucus from 2005 to 2017 and was the Sena ...
filed for cloture on the nomination. On March 27, 2014, the Senate voted 54–44 to invoke cloture on Owens' nomination. On March 31, 2014, the United States Senate confirmed Owens' nomination by a 56–43 vote. He received his judicial commission on April 2, 2014. Owens was officially seated and sworn in on April 25, 2014.
See also
* List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States (Seat 6)References
External links
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Owens, John Byron 1971 births Living people 21st-century American judges Assistant United States Attorneys California lawyers Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States People associated with Munger, Tolles & Olson People associated with O'Melveny & Myers People from Washington, D.C. The Harker School alumni Stanford Law School alumni United States court of appeals judges appointed by Barack Obama United States Department of Justice lawyers University of California, Berkeley alumni