Dale Ho facts for kids
Dale Ho is an American lawyer who now works as a judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Before becoming a judge, he led the voting rights project at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). This group helps protect people's rights, including their right to vote.
Quick facts for kids
Dale Ho
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| Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York | |
| Assumed office August 18, 2023 |
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| Appointed by | Joe Biden |
| Preceded by | Katherine B. Forrest |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Dale Edwin Ho
1977 (age 47–48) San Jose, California, U.S. |
| Education | Princeton University (BA) Yale University (JD) |
Contents
Early Life and Education
Dale Ho was born in 1977 in San Jose, California. He went to Princeton University and earned a degree in political philosophy in 1999. He then studied law at Yale Law School, graduating in 2005.
Career Highlights
After law school, Ho worked for different judges as a law clerk. This means he helped judges with their legal research and writing.
Working for Civil Rights
From 2007 to 2013, Ho worked for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (NAACP LDF). This organization works to protect the civil rights of African Americans. He focused on projects related to how voting districts are drawn, trying to make them fair.
In 2013, Ho became the Director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Voting Rights Project. This project works to make sure everyone has the right to vote and that voting is fair. He also taught law at New York University School of Law.
Featured in a Documentary
In 2019, Dale Ho was one of five ACLU lawyers featured in a documentary called The Fight. The film showed his work on an important case about the 2020 United States census.
Important Cases as a Lawyer
Dale Ho worked on several big cases that went to court. These cases often involved voting rights and how the government counts people.
- Fish v. Kobach (2018): Ho was a lead lawyer in this case. The court decided it was illegal to ask for proof of citizenship when people registered to vote. This ruling made it easier for people to sign up to vote.
- Department of Commerce v. New York (2019): Ho argued against the government's plan to add a question about citizenship to the 2020 census. He won this case, which meant the question was not included.
- Trump v. New York (2020): In this case, Ho challenged a plan to not count undocumented immigrants when deciding how many representatives each state gets in Congress. The ACLU did not win this case.
Becoming a Federal Judge
In 2021, President Joe Biden nominated Dale Ho to become a federal judge. This means he would serve on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Confirmation Process
Becoming a federal judge requires approval from the United States Senate. During his confirmation hearing, senators asked Ho about some past comments he made on social media. He apologized for some of his "overheated" remarks. He also explained that when he called himself a "wild-eyed sort of leftist," he was joking. He clarified that he was referring to how others might see him, not how he saw himself.
Some groups spoke out against his nomination, while others supported him. After a long process, the Senate voted to confirm him as a judge. He officially became a judge on August 18, 2023. He is only the second lawyer from the ACLU to become a federal judge directly. The first was Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who later became a Supreme Court Justice.
Notable Cases as a Judge
On September 25, 2024, Judge Ho was assigned to a case involving New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
Personal Life
Dale Ho is a member of the First Unitarian Congregational Society of Brooklyn.
See also
- Joe Biden judicial appointment controversies
- List of Asian American jurists
