Srikanth Srinivasan

Srikanth Srinivasan is an American jurist who has served on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit since 2013 and has been its chief judge since February 2020. Appointed by President Barack Obama, he previously held senior positions in the Office of the Solicitor General, argued dozens of cases before the Supreme Court, practiced at a major law firm, and taught appellate advocacy at Harvard Law School. His career spans government service, private practice, and academia, and his elevation to chief judge marked the first time a person of South‑Asian descent has led a federal appellate court.

Early life and legal career

Padmanabhan Srikanth “Sri” Srinivasan was born on February 23, 1967 in Chandigarh, India, into a family with Tamil Brahmin roots. His father, Thirunankovil Padmanabhan Srinivasan, came to the United States as a Fulbright scholar at the University of California, Berkeley and later accepted a faculty position in mathematics at the University of Kansas. The family settled permanently in Lawrence, Kansas, when Srikanth was four years old. His mother, Saroja, taught at the Kansas City Art Institute before joining the computer‑science department at the same university.

Srinivasan attended Lawrence High School, graduating in 1985. While there he played on the basketball team alongside future NBA player Danny Manning. He pursued undergraduate studies at Stanford University, earning a Bachelor of Arts with distinction in 1989. After completing his degree, he worked as a management analyst for the San Mateo County manager’s office from 1989 to 1991 before returning to Stanford for graduate study. There he enrolled simultaneously in the law school and the Graduate School of Business, receiving a JD–MBA in 1995. As a law student he served on the editorial board of the Stanford Law Review and graduated with Order of the Coif honors.

Following law school, Srinivasan began a series of prestigious clerkships that introduced him to both appellate and Supreme Court practice. He first clerked for Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (1995‑96). He then completed a one‑year fellowship in the Department of Justice’s Office of the Solicitor General (1996‑97) before serving as a law clerk to Associate Justice Sandra Day O’Connor of the United States Supreme Court (1997‑98).

After his clerkships, Srinivasan entered private practice as an associate at O’Melveny & Myers in Washington, D.C., where he worked from 1998 until 2002. He returned to public service in 2002, rejoining the Office of the Solicitor General and remaining there through 2007. During this period he contributed to the federal government’s appellate advocacy, ultimately arguing a substantial number of cases before the Supreme Court.

In 2007 Srinivasan went back to O’Melveny & Myers as a partner and became the hiring partner for the firm’s Washington office. Among his notable representations were ExxonMobil in litigation concerning alleged human‑rights abuses by security personnel at an Indonesian gas plant, and former Enron executive Jeffrey Skilling in a Supreme Court appeal that challenged the “honest services” fraud statute. The Court’s decision on Skilling affirmed the narrow interpretation of the statute while rejecting arguments about trial venue.

Alongside his practice, Srinivasan contributed to legal education as a lecturer at Harvard Law School, where he co‑taught a course focused on Supreme Court and appellate advocacy. His public service was recognized in 2005 with the Office of the Secretary of Defense Award for Excellence. He also performed pro bono work for presidential candidate Al Gore following the contested 2000 election.

In August 2011 Srinivasan was appointed principal deputy solicitor general, succeeding Neal Katyal. By May 2013 he had argued twenty‑five cases before the Supreme Court, demonstrating a breadth of experience in constitutional and statutory interpretation.

Federal appellate service

Srinivasan’s name first surfaced publicly as a potential nominee to the D.C. Circuit in early 2010, when commentators noted both his extensive government experience and the concerns of some interest groups regarding his prior corporate work. President Barack Obama formally nominated him to fill the vacancy on the circuit in June 2012. The Senate returned the nomination on January 2, 2013 because of the sine die adjournment of that session; the president renominated him the following day.

The confirmation process proceeded without notable controversy. Srinivasan’s hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee took place on April 10, 2013 and was described as uneventful. The committee reported his nomination favorably on May 16, 2013 with a unanimous 18‑0 vote. The full Senate confirmed him on May 23, 2013 by a vote of 97‑0. He received his commission the next day, May 24, 2013, and took the oath of office in June before Chief Judge Merrick Garland. At his formal swearing‑in ceremony in September, retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor administered the oath, which Srinivasan pronounced on the Bhagavad Gita, making him the first federal appellate judge of South Asian descent.

Srinivasan has served continuously as an active circuit judge on the District of Columbia Circuit since his confirmation. He occupies seat CADC1004 and, after nearly seven years on the bench, succeeded Judge Merrick Garland as chief judge on February 11, 2020. In that capacity he oversees the administration of one of the nation’s most influential appellate courts, which frequently handles cases involving federal agencies, administrative law, and matters of national significance.

Jurisprudence and legacy

During his tenure on the D.C. Circuit, Judge Srinivasan has authored opinions that reflect a careful approach to standing doctrine, statutory interpretation, and administrative authority. In *Sierra Club v. Jewell* (2014) he wrote for the majority in a split decision holding that environmental groups possessed Article III standing to challenge the removal of a historic battlefield from the National Register of Historic Places. The opinion underscored the principle that litigants must demonstrate a concrete, particularized injury to invoke judicial review.

Another notable decision authored by Srinivasan is *Pom Wonderful v. Federal Trade Commission* (2015), in which the panel upheld an FTC regulation concerning deceptive health‑claim advertising. While the opinion’s detailed reasoning is beyond this summary, its outcome affirmed the agency’s authority to police commercial speech that could mislead consumers.

Beyond specific rulings, Srinivasan’s broader impact stems from his leadership as chief judge. He manages the court’s docket, supervises judicial administration, and represents the circuit in interactions with other branches of government. His experience arguing before the Supreme Court and his background in both public service and private practice provide a perspective that bridges divergent legal cultures.

In 2016, following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, President Obama publicly mentioned Srinivasan as one of several potential nominees to the United States Supreme Court, although the president ultimately selected Merrick Garland for the vacancy. The consideration highlighted Srinivasan’s reputation among legal scholars and policymakers as a jurist with substantial appellate expertise.

Judge Srikanth Srinivasan’s career illustrates a trajectory that combines scholarly achievement, high‑level government advocacy, private‑sector litigation, and judicial administration. His ascent to chief judge of the D.C. Circuit marks a historic milestone for representation on the federal bench while his opinions continue to shape the development of administrative law, environmental standing, and consumer protection jurisprudence. As chief judge, he remains responsible for guiding one of the nation’s most consequential appellate courts through an era marked by complex regulatory challenges and evolving legal doctrines.