Mehta is first Asian American to occupy position.
WASHINGTON, DC: The United State has confirmed Amit Priyavadan Mehta as a federal judge in the District of Columbia.
Mehta, who becomes the first Asian Pacific American to occupy this important position, was confirmed late in the night yesterday by a voice vote, along with over a dozen pending judicial nominations. He was nominated by President Barack Obama in July this year.
Mehta has been a partner at Zuckerman Spaeder since 2010, where he represents clients in civil and criminal matters before state and federal courts. He is a graduate of Georgetown University, magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, and the University of Virginia School of Law, Order of the Coif.
Mehta clerked for Judge Susan Graber, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He also worked at Zuckerman Spaeder as an associate for three years, and then worked for the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia for five years
He represented indigent criminal defendants in trials, appeals and administrative proceedings.
Mehta later rejoined Zuckerman Spaeder, where he has represented companies and individuals in a broad range of federal criminal matters, including bribery, political corruption, mail and wire fraud, export control and sanctions violations, and environmental crimes.
Mehta also has represented plaintiffs and defendants in federal civil matters, including antitrust and a Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement action. In a pro bono capacity, he has devoted more than 450 hours since 2010 to post-conviction proceedings for an individual convicted of murder.
Mehta, who emigrated from India with his family when he a year old, is also vice president of the board of directors of the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project.