{ "id": "ep49fe119b", "slug": "ana-i-de-alba", "title": "Ana I. de Alba", "updated": "2026-09-29", "topic_path": [ { "id": "society", "label": "Society and history", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society" }, { "id": "society.law", "label": "Law and justice", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law" }, { "id": "society.law.practice", "label": "Courts and legal practice", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people", "label": "Legal biographies", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us", "label": "United States judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal", "label": "US federal judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3", "label": "Article III judges (district and appellate)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.appeals-judges", "label": "United States courts of appeals judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.appeals-judges" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.appeals-judges.alpha-a-to-c", "label": "Surnames A to C", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.appeals-judges.alpha-a-to-c" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.appeals-judges", "label": "United States · 2021 and later: United States courts of appeals judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.appeals-judges", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021", "label": "United States · 2021 and later", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society", "label": "Society and history", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law", "label": "Law and justice", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice", "label": "Courts and legal practice", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people", "label": "Legal biographies", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us", "label": "United States judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal", "label": "US federal judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.appeals-judges", "label": "United States courts of appeals judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.appeals-judges" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Ana Isabel de Alba is an American jurist serving as a judge on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals since 2023, appointed by President Biden.", "snippet": "Ana Isabel de Alba is an American jurist serving as a judge on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals since 2023, appointed by President Biden.", "node": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.appeals-judges.alpha-a-to-c", "markdown": "# Ana I. de Alba\n\nAna Isabel de Alba (born 1979)[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) is an American jurist serving as a United States circuit judge of the [United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit](https://www.edgepedia.org/united-states-court-of-appeals-for-the-ninth-circuit) since 2023.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) She was appointed to the court by President Joseph R. Biden, after previously serving as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California from 2022 to 2023.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) She is the first district judge from the Eastern District of California to ascend to a Ninth Circuit judgeship, and upon taking her oath she became the fourth Hispanic woman appointed to the Ninth Circuit.[2](https://www.caed.uscourts.gov/caednew/index.cfm/news-archive/senate-confirms-district-judge-ana-de-alba-to-us-court-of-appeals-for-the-ninth-circuit/)\n\n| Fact | Detail |\n| --- | --- |\n| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) |\n| Appointed by | Joseph R. Biden[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) |\n| Confirmed | November 13, 2023, by a vote of 48 to 43[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) • [3](https://voteview.com/rollcall/RS1180308) |\n| Born | 1979 in Merced, California[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) |\n| Education | B.A., University of California, Berkeley, 2002; J.D., University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, 2007[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) |\n\n## Early life and education\n\nDe Alba was born in 1979 in [Merced, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/merced-california).[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) She is the child of immigrant farm workers; her parents had immigrated from Mexico to labor in the fields of California's Central Valley, and she grew up with three older brothers in South Dos Palos, a small agricultural community west of Fresno.[4](https://www.fedbar.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/de-Alba-profile.pdf) Beginning at age six, she worked alongside her mother and grandmother in the tomato fields, and she later secured clerical work at an insurance company and a local hospital, where she also interpreted for Spanish-speaking patients.[4](https://www.fedbar.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/de-Alba-profile.pdf)\n\nShe earned a B.A. from the [University of California](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-california), Berkeley in 2002 and a J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law in 2007.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) During her undergraduate years she worked to cover the cost of living in the Bay Area, and in her senior year she started a tutoring program in Oakland that provided English instruction to the parents of her students.[4](https://www.fedbar.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/de-Alba-profile.pdf)\n\n## Legal career\n\nFrom 2007 to 2018, de Alba was in private practice in [Fresno, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/fresno-california).[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) She began her career at Lang, Richert & Patch, a business litigation firm in Fresno where she had worked during the summer after her second year of law school, and became a partner in 2013, the first Latina in the firm's history to earn such a promotion.[4](https://www.fedbar.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/de-Alba-profile.pdf) In addition to the firm's business clientele, she took on pro bono work representing low-income undocumented workers.[4](https://www.fedbar.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/de-Alba-profile.pdf)\n\nIn 2018, Governor Jerry Brown appointed de Alba to the Superior Court of California, County of Fresno, where she served from 2018 to 2022.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) She sat in the court's Criminal Law Division from 2018 to 2021 and its Juvenile Justice Division from 2021 to 2022.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) In 2021 she was also an adjunct professor at San Joaquin College of Law.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571)\n\n## Federal judicial service\n\nPresident Joseph R. Biden nominated de Alba on January 19, 2022, to a judgeship on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) The Senate confirmed her on June 21, 2022, by a vote of 53 to 45.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) • [5](https://voteview.com/rollcall/RS1170762) She received her commission on July 7, 2022.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571)\n\nOn April 17, 2023, Biden nominated de Alba to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) Her nomination hearing was held on May 17, and her nomination was reported to the Senate floor on June 8.[2](https://www.caed.uscourts.gov/caednew/index.cfm/news-archive/senate-confirms-district-judge-ana-de-alba-to-us-court-of-appeals-for-the-ninth-circuit/) The Senate confirmed her on November 13, 2023, by a vote of 48 to 43.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) • [3](https://voteview.com/rollcall/RS1180308) She received her commission on November 15, 2023, and her district court service ended the following day, November 16, 2023, upon her appointment to the appellate position.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571) She fills a judgeship vacant since May 31, 2023, when Circuit Judge Paul Watford resigned, and maintains chambers in Fresno.[2](https://www.caed.uscourts.gov/caednew/index.cfm/news-archive/senate-confirms-district-judge-ana-de-alba-to-us-court-of-appeals-for-the-ninth-circuit/)\n\n## Notable cases\n\nIn *Reach Community Development v. United States Department of Homeland Security*, de Alba dissented from an emergency order and would have denied the government's stay and administrative-stay motions, writing that the government had not shown likely irreparable harm and that its arguments were forfeited.[6](https://ezel.ai/judges/ca9/ana-de-alba)\n\nIn a 2025 consolidated appeal involving the State of Montana and Talen Montana, LLC and NorthWestern Corporation, de Alba wrote for the panel: \"We hold that the district court correctly applied the PPL framework to the evidence and did not violate any PPL mandate. We therefore affirm the district court's judgment.\"[6](https://ezel.ai/judges/ca9/ana-de-alba)\n\nIn a separate writing in a case involving a stay request, de Alba wrote: \"The government ultimately failed to properly move for a stay, and argue irreparable harm, before the district court.\"[6](https://ezel.ai/judges/ca9/ana-de-alba) In another separate writing, she stated: \"Our inquiry should begin and end with irreparable harm when the movant has not shown a likelihood of irreparable harm absent a stay.\"[6](https://ezel.ai/judges/ca9/ana-de-alba)\n\nDe Alba has also sat on the panels in *Novedades Y Servicios, Inc. v. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network*, *Rinnai America Corporation v. South Coast Air Quality Management District*, and *Lifevoxel Virginia Spv, LLC v. lifevoxel.ai, Inc.*[7](https://benchlight.org/judges/ana-isabel-de-alba)\n\n## References\n\n1. [Federal Judicial Center, Biographical Directory of Article III Federal Judges](https://www.fjc.gov/node/12145571)\n2. [Senate Confirms District Judge Ana de Alba to U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit](https://www.caed.uscourts.gov/caednew/index.cfm/news-archive/senate-confirms-district-judge-ana-de-alba-to-us-court-of-appeals-for-the-ninth-circuit/)\n3. [Senate Roll Call Vote, November 13, 2023](https://voteview.com/rollcall/RS1180308)\n4. [The Federal Lawyer: Judge Ana de Alba Profile](https://www.fedbar.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/de-Alba-profile.pdf)\n5. [Senate Roll Call Vote, June 21, 2022](https://voteview.com/rollcall/RS1170762)\n6. [Ana Isabel de Alba: Rulings](https://ezel.ai/judges/ca9/ana-de-alba)\n7. [Benchlight: Ana Isabel de Alba](https://benchlight.org/judges/ana-isabel-de-alba)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Law and justice › Courts and legal practice › Legal biographies › United States judges › US federal judges › Article III judges (district and appellate) › United States courts of appeals judges › Surnames A to C*\n\n*Initially written Sep 27, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 28, 2026; Sep 29, 2026 · Edited: Sep 28, 2026 · Last review: Sep 29, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/ana-i-de-alba", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/ana-i-de-alba.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Ana I. de Alba\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/ana-i-de-alba. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Ana I. de Alba](https://www.edgepedia.org/ana-i-de-alba)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/ana-i-de-alba](https://www.edgepedia.org/ana-i-de-alba). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Ana I. de Alba\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/ana-i-de-alba. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Ana Isabel de Alba is an American jurist serving as a judge on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals since 2023, appointed by President Biden." }