The Affirmatively Hispanic Judge: Modern Opportunities for Increasing Hispanic Representation on the Federal Bench

There is an abundance of literature on how race shapes, or has the potential to shape, judicial decision-making. Rather than looking to what occurs once a Hispanic judge dons his or her robes, this Article examines the how and why of getting that judge appointed. Part I of this Article will review both the statistics of the general Hispanic population in the United States and examine how demographic changes warrant a renewed commitment to a diversified judiciary, and similarly review the current Hispanic composition serving on the federal bench. Part II will discuss why we should aim for representational parity between the percentage of Hispanics on the federal bench and the percentage of Hispanics residing in the United States. Part III will conclude that the Obama administration has the opportunity and mandate to aggressively promote Hispanic candidates to the federal judiciary, with the goal of continuing the upward trajectory that most recently occurred during the presidential administrations of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush