Magistrate Judge Irma Carrillo Ramirez Elevated to Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals

Ramirez's confirmation means 38 appellate judges have been approved since Joe Biden became President.

The U.S. Senate today held a recorded vote to confirm one individual as an Article III federal judge. With this confirmation, 160 judges nominated by President Joe Biden have now been confirmed by the Senate. With today’s action, 38 of Biden’s judicial nominees have been approved for service on federal appellate courts.

In an 80-12 vote, Irma Carrillo Ramirez was confirmed as a Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. She is Biden’s second confirmation to the 17-person court, with no additional vacancies at this time. Notably, she will become the first Hispanic woman and the second woman of color to serve on this court.

Ramirez assumes the Dallas, Texas-based seat previously held by Gregg Costa, who resigned in August 2022. A nominee of President Barack Obama, Costa served on the court from 2014 to 2022. Ramirez was nominated to this seat on the federal judiciary by Biden in April 2023.

Ramirez worked as an associate at Locke Purnell Rain Harrell PC in Dallas, Texas from 1991 to 1995. She then served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas from 1995 to 2002. Since September 2002, she has been a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

In March 2016, Ramirez was nominated by Obama to become a Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on her nomination in September 2016. However, the 114th Congress led by Senate Republicans never acted on her nomination and it expired on January 3, 2017.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit covers appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.