Judge James Ho
Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals
James Chun-Yee Ho was born in 1973 in Taipei, Taiwan. He was a toddler when he came to the United States with his parents. He earned an undergraduate degree in public policy from Stanford University and received his Juris Doctor from the University of Chicago School of Law. He clerked at the Fifth Circuit US. Court of Appeals.
He entered private practice in Washington, D.C., then joined the U.S. Justice Department, first in the Civil Rights Division and then in the Office of Legal Counsel. He served as chief counsel to subcommittees of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He then became a law clerk to United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.
He moved to Dallas Texas where he practiced law. He was Solicitor General in Texas in the Office of the Texas Attorney General for two years.
Ho was nominated by President Donald Trump to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. He was confirmed by the Senate and received his judicial commission in January 2018.
In the News…
Judge James Ho of the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals referenced critical race theory in stating that race-based fixations could endorse racism. He described “neutral policies” such as disparate impact theory and critical race theory as unintentionally discriminatory. He said Congress, not judges or agency officials, should be the entity to implement such programs.
“There’s a big difference between prohibiting racial discrimination and endorsing disparate impact theory,” he wrote in a six-page case concurrence. “It’s the difference between securing equality of opportunity regardless of race and guaranteeing equality of outcome based on race. … It’s the difference between color blindness and critical race theory.”
He said despite how well-intentioned the programs might be, they conflict with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination in federally funded programs. He suggested that critical race theory could be ill-motivated by some advocates.
Contact this Leader…
Did you pray for Judge Ho today? You can let him know at:
The Honorable James C. Ho
Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals
1100 Commerce Street, Suite 1452
Dallas, TX 75242
