Sarala Vidya Nagala (born 1983)[1] is an American lawyer from Connecticut who is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut.

Sarala Nagala
Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
Assumed office
November 2, 2021
Appointed byJoe Biden
Preceded byVanessa Lynne Bryant
Personal details
Born1983 (age 40–41)
Oakes, North Dakota, U.S.
EducationStanford University (BA)
University of California, Berkeley (JD)

Education

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Nagala received her Bachelor of Arts from Stanford University in 2005 and her Juris Doctor from UC Berkeley School of Law in 2008.[2]

Career

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She was a law clerk for Judge Susan P. Graber on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from 2008 to 2009. She was an associate at Munger, Tolles & Olson in San Francisco from 2009 to 2012.[2] She joined the U.S. Attorney's Office of Connecticut in 2012, where she served in a number of federal prosecutor roles, including Hate Crimes Coordinator[2] and an assistant United States attorney.[1] From 2017 to 2021, she was the deputy chief of the major crimes unit in the U.S. Attorney's Office in the District of Connecticut.[2] From 2017 to 2019, she was a visiting clinical lecturer at Yale Law School.[1]

Federal judicial service

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On June 15, 2021, President Joe Biden nominated Nagala to serve as a United States district judge for the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut to the seat vacated by Judge Vanessa Lynne Bryant, who assumed senior status on February 1, 2021.[3] On July 28, 2021, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[4] On September 23, 2021, her nomination was reported out of committee by a 13–9 vote.[5] On October 26, 2021, the United States Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 52–46 vote.[6] On October 27, 2021, her nomination was confirmed by a 52–46 vote.[7] She received her judicial commission on November 2, 2021.[8] She was sworn in on November 3, 2021.[9] She is the first judge of South Asian descent to serve on the District Court for the District of Connecticut.[2][10]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees: Sarala Vidya Nagala
  2. ^ a b c d e "President Biden Announces 4th Slate of Judicial Nominations", White House, June 15, 2021   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ^ "Seventeen Nominations Sent to Senate", White House, June 15, 2021
  4. ^ United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Nominations for July 28, 2021
  5. ^ "Results of Executive Business Meeting – September 23, 2021" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  6. ^ "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: Sarala Vidya Nagala to be U.S. District Judge for the District of Connecticut)". United States Senate. October 26, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  7. ^ "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Sarala Vidya Nagala, of Connecticut, to be U.S. District Judge for the District of Connecticut)". United States Senate. October 27, 2021. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  8. ^ Sarala Nagala at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  9. ^ "NEW JUDGE APPOINTED TO THE DISTRICT COURT" (PDF). ctd.uscourts.gov (Press release). November 5, 2021. Retrieved May 27, 2023.
  10. ^ Hulse, Carl (June 15, 2021). "A leading voting rights expert is among Biden's new round of judicial nominees". The New York Times. Retrieved June 15, 2021.
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Legal offices
Preceded by Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
2021–present
Incumbent