---
title: "Ronald Murray Gould | KnowJudges"
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updated: "2026-10-09"
---

# Ronald Murray Gould

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, 1999-present
- Adjunct professor, University of Washington Law School, 1986-1989
- Law clerk, Hon. Potter Stewart, Supreme Court of the United States, 1974-1975
- Clerk for Justice Potter Stewart, U.S. Supreme Court (1974–1975)
- Law clerk, Hon. Wade H. McCree, Jr., U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, 1973-1974
- Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

### Education

- University of Michigan Law School — J.D. (1973)
- University of Pennsylvania — B.S. (1968)

### Additional information

- American jurist who has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit since 1999.
- American Honda Motor Co., Inc. (2012), one of his most cited cases.
- He was nominated on 26 January 1999 to succeed Judge Robert Beezer and confirmed by voice vote on 17 November 1999.
- Private practice, Seattle, WA, 1975-1999
- Date of birth: 1946-01-01
- Gould has authored numerous opinions, including influential rulings such as Mazza v.
- Gould lives with progressive multiple sclerosis and continues to serve actively on the Ninth Circuit, often presiding remotely.
- Birth place: St. Louis, MO

## 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/1391066)
- [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1391066)
- [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1391066)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1254/ronald-murray-gould/)
- [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/1254/ronald-murray-gould/)
- [Wikidata: Ronald M. Gould](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7365076)

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