United States President Joe Biden announced on Tuesday said he would nominate Zahid Quraishi, a Pakistani-American, for the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
If confirmed by the Senate, Quraishi would also be the first Muslim-American federal judge in U.S. history.
Quraishi, a Rutgers Law School graduate who currently serves as a U.S. magistrate judge, is one of Biden’s first 10 nominations to the federal courts that placed heavy emphasis on his stated goal of promoting diversity across the government.
President Biden picked nine women and two men for his first crop of judicial nominees.
1/ @POTUS has nominated two outstanding individuals, Julien Neals and Judge Zahid Quraishi, for federal judgeships. I am proud to support their nomination to the U.S. District Court of NJ. https://t.co/9O2htbK955
— Senator Bob Menendez (@SenatorMenendez) March 30, 2021
“This trailblazing slate of nominees draws from the very best and brightest minds of the American legal profession,” Biden said in a statement.
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“Each is deeply qualified and prepared to deliver justice faithfully under our Constitution and impartially to the American people — and together they represent the broad diversity of background, experience, and perspective that makes our nation strong.”
Before his appointment, Quraishi was a partner at Riker Danzig where he chaired the firm’s White Collar Criminal Defence and Investigations Group and served as his firm’s first Chief Diversity Officer.
Before joining Riker Danzig, Judge Quraishi served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey from 2008 to 2013.
Biden had amassed a large number of votes from the Pakistani and Muslim community in the recent presidential elections. Nearly 70% American-Muslims have voted for Democratic Presidential candidate, Joe Biden while only 17% have voted for the Republican candidate and current President Donald Trump, reports the recent survey by Muslim Civil Liberties and Advocacy Organization, a group that advocates for civil liberties in the US.
In February, Pakistani-born, Saima Mohsin, had been appointed as the United States’ first Muslim attorney by the administration of President Joe Biden.
2/ Julien Neals and Judge Zahid Quraishi represent the best of New Jersey values and the state’s rich diversity. I have no doubt in their dedication to equal justice under the law and encourage their swift confirmation.
— Senator Bob Menendez (@SenatorMenendez) March 30, 2021
Mohsin had earlier served as the First Assistant United States Attorney since March 2018. According to the reports, Mohsin is the first Muslim woman immigrant to serve as the United States Attorney in the history of America.
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She assumed the charge following the resignation of the current attorney Matthew Schneider. The US Justice Department said Mohsin will “immediately assume office as Acting United States Attorney” as per the Vacancies Reform Act.