--- title: "Michelle Taryn Friedland | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/michelle-taryn-friedland" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Michelle Taryn Friedland 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, Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 2014-present - Federal judge serving on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, a position she has held since April 29, 2014 - She then held the role of a lecturer at Stanford Law School (2002–2004) before joining Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP in San Francisco as an associate in 2004, becoming a partner in 2010. - Law clerk, Hon. Sandra Day O'Connor, Supreme Court of the United States, 2001-2002 - Friedland clerked for Judge David Tatel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (2000–2001) and for Justice Sandra Day O’Connor on the U.S. Supreme Court (2001–2002) - Law clerk, Hon. David Tatel, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, 2000-2001 ### Education - Stanford University — J.D. (2000) - She studied philosophy at Wolfson College, Oxford on a Fulbright Scholarship, then received her J.D. from Stanford Law School in 2000, graduating Order of the Coif and second in her class. ### Additional information - After initial Senate consideration, she was renominated on January 6, 2014, and confirmed by the Senate on April 28, 2014, with her commission issued the next day. - Private practice, San Francisco, CA, 2004-2014 - On August 1, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Friedland to fill the seat vacated by Judge Raymond C. Fisher. - Born in Berkeley, California, in 1972, Friedland graduated from The Pingry School in New Jersey before earning a B.S. in biology from Stanford University in 1995, graduating Phi Beta Kappa. - Date of birth: 1972-01-01 - The American Bar Association rated her Unanimously Well Qualified. - Horton on same-sex marriage. - As a Ninth Circuit judge, Friedland hears appeals in federal cases within the Ninth Circuit’s jurisdiction, covering a wide range of legal issues. - Her litigation work spanned antitrust, tax, patent, copyright, consumer class actions, and constitutional issues, including representing the University of California and litigating in cases such as Strauss v. - She continues to be recognized for her extensive trial and appellate experience, as well as her commitment to fairness and judicial integrity. - Birth place: Berkeley, CA ## 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/1394436) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394436) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394436) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1119/michelle-taryn-friedland/) - [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/1119/michelle-taryn-friedland/) - [Wikidata: Michelle T. Friedland](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16213955) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/michelle-taryn-friedland", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/michelle-taryn-friedland", "name": "Michelle Taryn Friedland | KnowJudges", "description": "Michelle Taryn Friedland, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. 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