Micah Smith (Hawaii)

Nomination Tracker
Nominee Information
	Name: Micah W. J. Smith
	Court: United States District Court for the District of Hawaii
Progress
	Confirmed 79 days after nomination.
	Nominated: September 11, 2023
	ABA Rating: Well Qualified
	Questionnaire: Questionnaire
	Hearing: October 4, 2023
	Hearing Transcript: Hearing Transcript
	QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more)
	Reported: October 26, 2023
	Confirmed: November 29, 2023
	Vote: 57-41

Micah W. J. Smith is a judge on the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii. He was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on September 11, 2023, and confirmed by the United States Senate on November 29, 2023, by a vote of 57-41.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4] To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.

The United States District Court for the District of Hawaii is one of 94 U.S. District Courts. They are the general trial courts of the United States federal courts. To learn more about the court, click here.

Prior to joining the court, Smith was an assistant United States attorney for the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii.^[5]

Judicial nominations and appointments

United States District Court for the District of Hawaii (2024-present)

See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

On September 11, 2023, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Smith to the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii.^[1] He was confirmed by a 57-41 vote of the U.S. Senate on November 29, 2023.^[3] Smith received commission on January 31, 2024.^[4] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.

Confirmation vote

The U.S. Senate confirmed Smith by a vote of 57-41 on November 29, 2023.^[3] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.

Micah Smith confirmation vote (November 29, 2023)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	47	0	1
Republican	7	41	1
Independent	3	0	0
Total	57^[6]	41	2

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Smith's nomination on October 4, 2023. Smith was reported to the full Senate on October 26, 2023, after a 14-7 committee vote.^[2] Click here for a list of other nominees awaiting a committee vote.

Nomination

On August 30, 2023, President Joe Biden (D) announced his intent to nominate Micah W. J. Smith to the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii. The president officially nominated Smith on September 11, 2023.

Smith was nominated to replace Judge John Seabright, who retired on January 30, 2024.^[7]

The American Bar Association (ABA) rated Smith well qualified.^[8] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.

Biography

Education

Smith earned a bachelor's degree from Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania in 2003 and law degree from Harvard Law School in 2006.^[4]

Professional career

2024-present: Judge, United States District Court for the District of Hawaii
2020: Lecturer in law, University of Hawaii William S. Richardson School of Law
2018-2024: Assistant U.S. attorney, Criminal Division, District of Hawaii
- 2022-2024: Chief, Appeals and Legal Strategy
- 2021-2024: Criminal civil rights coordinator
- 2019-2024: Deputy chief, Criminal Division
- 2019: Project Safe Neighborhoods Coordinator
- 2018-2019: Co-chief, Violent Crime and Drug Section
2017: Lecturer in law, Columbia Law School
2012-2018: Assistant U.S. attorney, Criminal Division, Southern District of New York
- 2017-2018: Co-chief, Violent and Organized Crime Unit
- 2017-2018: Member, Department of Justice Human Source Review Committee,
- 2017-2018: DNA liaison
- 2016-2017: Deputy chief, Violent and Organized Crime Unit
- 2016-2017: Acting deputy chief, Criminal Appeals Unit
2008-2012: Private practice
2007-2008: Law clerk, Hon. David H. Souter
2006-2007: Law clerk, Hon. Guido Calabresi^[4]

About the court

The District of Hawaii has original jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.

The jurisdiction of the District of Hawaii consists of all the counties in the state of Hawaii.

To read opinions published by this court, click here.

The federal nomination process

Federal judges are nominated by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate. There are multiple steps to the process:

The president nominates an individual for a judicial seat.
The nominee fills out a questionnaire and is reviewed by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing with the nominee, questioning them about things like their judicial philosophy, past rulings or opinions, etc.

As part of this process, the committee sends a blue slip to senators from the home state in which the judicial nomination was received, allowing them to express their approval or disapproval of the nominee.

After the hearing, the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote to approve or return the nominee.

If approved, the nominee is voted on by the full Senate.
If the Committee votes to return the nominee to the president, the president has the opportunity to re-nominate the individual.

The Senate holds a vote on the candidate.

If the Senate confirms the nomination, the nominee receives a commission to serve a lifelong position as a federal judge.
If the Senate does not confirm the nomination, that nominee does not become a judge.