{ "id": "epndkvt4f0", "slug": "patrick-c-pitts", "title": "Patrick C. Pitts", "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.district-judges", "label": "United States district court judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-n-to-p", "label": "Surnames N to P", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-n-to-p" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-n-to-p", "label": "United States · 2021 and later: Surnames N to P", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-n-to-p", "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.district-judges", "label": "United States district court judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-n-to-p", "label": "Surnames N to P", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-n-to-p" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Patrick C. Pitts, born Patrick Casey Pitts in 1980, is an American jurist serving as a United States district judge for the Northern District of California since 2023.", "snippet": "Patrick C. Pitts, born Patrick Casey Pitts in 1980, is an American jurist serving as a United States district judge for the Northern District of California since 2023.", "node": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-n-to-p", "markdown": "# Patrick C. Pitts\n\nPatrick Casey Pitts (born 1980) is an American jurist serving as a United States district judge of the [United States District Court for the Northern District of California](https://www.edgepedia.org/united-states-district-court-for-the-northern-district-of-california) since 2023.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) He was appointed by President Joseph R. Biden and commissioned in 2023.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) He sits in the court's San Jose division.[2](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/ce9/2023/Pitts_CAN_Confirmed.pdf)\n\n| Fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Court | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) |\n| Appointed by | Joseph R. Biden[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) |\n| Confirmed | June 14, 2023, by a vote of 53 to 46[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) • [3](https://voteview.com/rollcall/RS1180161) |\n| Born | 1980, Moorhead, Minnesota[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) |\n| Education | B.A., Yale University, 2003; J.D., Yale Law School, 2008[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) |\n\n## Early life and education\n\nPitts was born in 1980 in Moorhead, Minnesota.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) He was raised in [Fargo, North Dakota](https://www.edgepedia.org/fargo-north-dakota).[2](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/ce9/2023/Pitts_CAN_Confirmed.pdf) He received a [Bachelor of Arts](https://www.edgepedia.org/bachelor-of-arts), summa cum laude, from Yale University in 2003 and a [Juris Doctor](https://www.edgepedia.org/juris-doctor) from Yale Law School in 2008.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) • [2](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/ce9/2023/Pitts_CAN_Confirmed.pdf)\n\n## Legal career\n\nPitts served as a law clerk to Judge Stephen Reinhardt of the [United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit](https://www.edgepedia.org/united-states-court-of-appeals-for-the-ninth-circuit) from 2008 to 2009.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) He then entered private practice in San Francisco, California, joining the firm Altshuler Berzon LLP as an associate from 2009 through 2016 and serving as a partner from 2017 until he took the bench.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) • [2](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/ce9/2023/Pitts_CAN_Confirmed.pdf) His practice focused on complex impact litigation and employment matters.[2](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/ce9/2023/Pitts_CAN_Confirmed.pdf)\n\nHe was an active member of the Bar Association of San Francisco, the AFL-CIO Union Lawyers Alliance, and BALIF, the Bay Area's LGBTQ+ bar association, and served as an appellate lawyer representative to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference from 2018 to 2021.[2](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/ce9/2023/Pitts_CAN_Confirmed.pdf)\n\n## Federal judicial service\n\nPitts was first nominated to the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on September 6, 2022; the nomination received no Senate vote and was returned to the president when the Second Session of the 117th Congress adjourned on January 3, 2023.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) • [2](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/ce9/2023/Pitts_CAN_Confirmed.pdf) He was renominated on January 23, 2023.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) The Senate confirmed him on June 14, 2023, by a vote of 53 to 46.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) • [3](https://voteview.com/rollcall/RS1180161) He received his commission on July 7, 2023.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591) Chief Judge Richard Seeborg welcomed him to the court's busy San Jose division.[2](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/ce9/2023/Pitts_CAN_Confirmed.pdf)\n\n## Notable cases\n\nIn *Pablo Sequen v. Albarran*, Pitts ruled on June 23, 2026, with final judgment entered June 30, 2026, vacating 2025 guidance from [Immigration](https://www.edgepedia.org/immigration) and Customs Enforcement and the Executive Office for Immigration Review that had authorized broad civil arrests at or near immigration courthouses, and rejecting a waiver that had allowed short-term holding rooms to be used beyond a prior 12-hour norm.[4](https://politicalactionalerts.com/judge-p-casey-pitts-blocks-ice-courthouse-arrests-restores-12-hour-rule/) He ruled that the guidance was \"arbitrary and capricious\" under the Administrative Procedure Act and could not stand, vacating the nationwide policy.[4](https://politicalactionalerts.com/judge-p-casey-pitts-blocks-ice-courthouse-arrests-restores-12-hour-rule/) Department of Homeland Security General Counsel James Percival criticized the ruling.[4](https://politicalactionalerts.com/judge-p-casey-pitts-blocks-ice-courthouse-arrests-restores-12-hour-rule/)\n\n## References\n\n1. [Biographical Directory of Article III Federal Judges: Patrick Casey Pitts](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13705591)\n2. [Senate Confirms P. Casey Pitts for Federal Judgeship in Northern District of California](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/ce9/2023/Pitts_CAN_Confirmed.pdf)\n3. [Senate Roll Call Vote, June 14, 2023](https://voteview.com/rollcall/RS1180161)\n4. [Judge P. Casey Pitts Blocks ICE Courthouse Arrests, Restores 12-Hour Rule](https://politicalactionalerts.com/judge-p-casey-pitts-blocks-ice-courthouse-arrests-restores-12-hour-rule/)\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 district court judges › Surnames N to P*\n\n*Initially written Sep 27, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 29, 2026 · Edited: Sep 29, 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/patrick-c-pitts", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/patrick-c-pitts.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": "\"Patrick C. Pitts\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/patrick-c-pitts. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Patrick C. Pitts](https://www.edgepedia.org/patrick-c-pitts)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/patrick-c-pitts](https://www.edgepedia.org/patrick-c-pitts). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Patrick C. Pitts\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/patrick-c-pitts. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Patrick C. Pitts, born Patrick Casey Pitts in 1980, is an American jurist serving as a United States district judge for the Northern District of California since 2023." }