--- title: "Holly Aiyisha Thomas | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/holly-aiyisha-thomas" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Holly Aiyisha Thomas U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit · U.S. Circuit Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit - State: National federal courts - Role: U.S. Circuit Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, 2018-present - U.S. Circuit Judge on the Ninth Circuit, appointed by President Joe Biden in 2022, and the first Black woman from California to serve on that federal appellate bench - Judge, Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, 2018-2022 - Judge pro tem, California Court of Appeal, Second District, 2021 - Deputy director of executive programs, California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, 2016-2018 - Deputy Director of Executive Programs, California Dept. of Fair Employment & Housing (2016–2018) - Senior attorney, Appellate Section, Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 2010-2015 - Assistant counsel, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, New York City, 2005-2010 - Assistant counsel, NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund (2005–2010), including as a Liman Fellow (2005–2006) - Law clerk, Hon. Kim McLane Wardlaw, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 2004-2005 - Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ### Education - a J.D. from Yale Law School in 2004, where she edited the Yale Law Journal. - She obtained a B.A. with honors from Stanford University in 2000 ### Additional information - Special counsel to the solicitor general, State of New York, 2015-2016 - Senior attorney, U.S. DOJ Civil Rights Division (2010–2015) - Born in San Diego, California, in 1979, Thomas grew up the daughter of a bookkeeper and a school custodian, neither of whom attended college. - Date of birth: 1979 - NLRB and People of the State of Cal. v. - Fmcsa. - she has authored opinions and sat on panels in cases involving labor law, civil rights, and federal agency actions, such as Pacific Maritime Association v. - Birth place: San Diego ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### appellate oral argument Scope: courtwide In federal courts of appeals, oral argument is allowed unless a three-judge panel unanimously finds one of Rule 34's specified grounds for dispensing with it; the clerk provides the date, time, place, and time allocation. Evidence excerpt: Oral argument must be allowed in every case unless a panel of three judges who have examined the briefs and record unanimously agrees that oral argument is unnecessary [Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-appellate-procedure) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.fjc.gov/node/11386196) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/11386196) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/11386196) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/14334/holly-aiyisha-thomas/) - [Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-appellate-procedure) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/14334/holly-aiyisha-thomas/) - [Judge Holly Aiyisha Thomas](https://www.fjc.gov/node/11386196) - [Wikidata: Holly A. Thomas](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q108461057) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/holly-aiyisha-thomas", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/holly-aiyisha-thomas", "name": "Holly Aiyisha Thomas | KnowJudges", "description": "Holly Aiyisha Thomas, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. 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