Amir Ali (lawyer)
Amir Ali | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | Amir Hatem Mahdy Ali 1985 (age 38–39) Kingston, Ontario, Canada |
| Education | University of Waterloo (BSE) Harvard University (JD) |
Amir Hatem Mahdy Ali (born 1985)[1] is an American attorney and law professor who has argued multiple cases before the U.S. Supreme Court[2][3] and testified before Congress. He is regarded as an expert in constitutional law, civil procedure, and criminal procedure, including issues related to sentencing and habeas corpus, the right to counsel, and government accountability.[4]
Ali is a nominee to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.[5]
Education[edit]
Ali received a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada in 2008 and a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School in 2011.[6]
Career[edit]
After graduating, Ali served as a law clerk for Judge Raymond C. Fisher of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from 2011 to 2012 and for Justice Marshall Rothstein of the Supreme Court of Canada from 2012 to 2013.[3] From 2013 to 2017, Ali practiced at the law firm Jenner & Block, where he worked on complex commercial cases, intellectual property disputes, administrative litigation, and appeals.[7] He also argued and won a case before the U.S. Supreme Court as a fifth-year associate.[8] Since 2021, Ali is the executive director of the MacArthur Justice Center,[9][10] a nonprofit law firm founded by businessman and philanthropist J. Roderick MacArthur. Since 2018, Ali is a professor at Harvard Law School, where he directs the law school's criminal justice appellate clinic.[9][3] Ali has also served as an adjunct professor of litigation and constitutional law at the University of District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law and Georgetown Law School.[11][12] He has previously served on multiple Boards of Directors, including The Appellate Project[13][14] and the Mosaic Theatre Company of D.C.[15]
Nomination to district court[edit]
On January 10, 2024, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Ali to serve as a United States district judge for the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.[6] On February 1, 2024, President Biden nominated Ali to a seat vacated by Judge Beryl Howell, who assumed senior status on February 1, 2024.[16] On February 8, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[17] In the lead up to the hearing, Ali received letters of support from law enforcement organizations and officers, high-level Department of Justice officials and U.S. Attorneys, libertarian organizations, civil rights organizations, and corporate executives.[17] During his hearing, Senator Lindsey Graham questioned him over statements made by Cliff Johnson, his predecesdor as MacArthur Center director, who said in 2020 that advocates for defunding police agencies were part of a "movement toward making police departments obsolete."[18] Ali responded, "I do not believe law enforcement is or should be obsolete, or defunded."[17] Ali's nomination is pending before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[19] If confirmed, Ali would be the first Arab American federal judge to serve in D.C.[20][21]
Notable cases[edit]
- In 2015, Ali represented the petitioner in Brumfield v. Cain,[22] in which the U.S. Supreme Court reversed the death sentence of Louisiana death-row prisoner Kevan Brumfield and held that he was categorically ineligible for execution because he had an intellectually disability.[22]
- In 2016, Ali argued for the petitioner in Welch v. United States,[23] and obtained a 7-1 majority opinion written by Justice Anthony Kennedy in which the U.S. Supreme Court held that prisoners who were sentenced to unconstitutional mandatory minimums were retroactively entitled to resentencing or release.[24]
- Ali filed a brief on behalf of the MacArthur Justice Center in Hawaii v. Trump in 2017, documenting President Trump's record of statements about Muslim people.[25] Justice Sonia Sotomayor cited Ali's brief in her dissenting opinion.[26]
- In 2018, Ali represented Louisiana prisoner Corey Williams before the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Williams v. Louisiana.[27] Williams had been wrongfully convicted of capital murder in 1998 at the age of 16, and spent over twenty years at Angola Penitentiary.[27] In response to Ali's petition, the District Attorney agreed to the immediate release of Mr. Williams.[28]
- In 2019, Ali argued for the petitioner in Garza v. Idaho,[29] and obtained a 6-3 majority opinion from the U.S. Supreme Court establishing that a criminal defendant has the constitutional right to an appeal that has been forfeited by his attorney, even if the defendant's plea agreement states that it waives the right of appeal.[30][31]
- In 2022, Ali argued for the petitioner in Thompson v. Clark, and obtained a 6-3 majority opinion written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh recognizing a federal cause of action against police officers who pursue false charges against someone.[32]
References[edit]
- ↑ "Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
- ↑ "Author". The Appeal. June 20, 2019. Retrieved 2020-12-05.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 School, Harvard Law. "Amir Ali | Harvard Law School". Retrieved 2020-10-13.
- ↑ Bokat-Lindell, Spencer (2020-06-02). "Opinion | The One Police Reform That Both the Left and the Right Support". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-06-26.
- ↑ "Fixes Raised to Shine Light on Supreme Court's 'Shadow Docket'". news.bloomberglaw.com. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "President Biden Names Forty-Fourth Round of Judicial Nominees". The White House. January 10, 2024. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
- ↑ https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/download/jenner-and-block-attorneys-support-for-ali?download=1
- ↑ Lat, David (19 April 2016). "A Biglaw Associate's Big Supreme Court Victory". Above the Law. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Jagannathan, Meera. "'They get a get-out-of-jail-free card': How qualified immunity protects police and other government officials from civil lawsuits". MarketWatch. Retrieved 2020-12-05.
- ↑ "Amir Ali". MacArthur Justice. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
- ↑ "The Leadership Conference Supports the Confirmation of Amir Ali". The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
- ↑ Dequan (2024-02-05). "Amir Ali – Nominee to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia". The Vetting Room. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
- ↑ Mauro, Tony. "'Appellate Project' Aims to Boost Diversity in Specialized Bar". National Law Journal. Retrieved 2020-12-05.
- ↑ "Amir H Ali Bio". The Appellate Project. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
- ↑ "Board of Directors". Mosaic Theater of DC. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
- ↑ "Nominations Sent to the Senate" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. February 3, 2024.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 "Nominations". Washington, D.C.: United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. February 7, 2024.
- ↑ Weiss, Benjamin S. "Senate border skirmish begets breezy hearing for White House court nominees". Courthouse News. Retrieved February 8, 2024.
- ↑ "PN1402 — Amir H. Ali — The Judiciary". United States Congress. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
- ↑ "Durbin Delivers Opening Statement During Latest Judiciary Committee Hearing on Judicial Nominations | United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary". www.judiciary.senate.gov. 2024-02-08. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
- ↑ "The Leadership Conference Supports the Confirmation of Amir Ali". The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 "Brumfield v. Cain, 135 S. Ct. 2269 | Casetext Search + Citator". casetext.com. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
- ↑ "Welch v. United States". Oyez.
- ↑ "Welch v. United States". SCOTUSblog. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
- ↑ Court document. Travel Ban supremecourt.gov Retrieved May 3, 2023
- ↑ Trump v. Hawaii (06/26/2018) supremecourt.gov Retrieved May 3, 2023
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 Berman, Mark. "He was 16 when Louisiana charged him with murder. Two decades later, he's free". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2020-10-13.
- ↑ Dequan (2024-02-05). "Amir Ali – Nominee to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia". The Vetting Room. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
- ↑ "Garza v. Idaho". Oyez. Chicago-Kent College of Law. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
- ↑ "Amir H. Ali". Alliance for Justice. 2024-02-05. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
- ↑ Dequan (2024-02-05). "Amir Ali – Nominee to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia". The Vetting Room. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
- ↑ "Biden Picks MacArthur Justice Center's Amir Ali for DC District Court Seat". Harvard Law School. 2024-01-24. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
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