---
title: "William A. Fletcher | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/william-a-fletcher"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-07"
---

# William A. Fletcher

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: senior
- 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, 1998-present
- Professor of law, University of California, Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law, 1977-1998
- Professor of Law, UC Berkeley School of Law (1977–1998)
- Law clerk, Hon. William J. Brennan, Jr., Supreme Court of the United States, 1976-1977
- Law clerk, Hon. Stanley A. Weigel, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, 1975-1976
- William Alan Fletcher is a long‐serving federal judge on the Ninth Circuit

### Education

- Yale University — J.D. (1975)
- Yale Law School — J.D. (1975)
- Harvard University — B.A. (1968)

### Additional information

- He assumed senior status on January 24, 2022.
- U.S. Navy lieutenant, 1970-1972
- Born June 6, 1945, in Philadelphia.
- Date of birth: 1945-01-01
- Birth place: Philadelphia, PA

## 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/1390781)
- [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1390781)
- [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1390781)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1079/william-a-fletcher/)
- [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/1079/william-a-fletcher/)

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