Thomas Tang

Thomas Tang was a United States circuit judge who served on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from 1977 until his death in 1995. Born in Phoenix, Arizona, in 1922, he became the first American of Chinese descent to serve as a federal judge in the United States. Appointed to the federal appellate bench by President Jimmy Carter, a Democrat, Tang brought to his judicial service a diverse background that included military service in two conflicts, prosecutorial experience, local government service, and state court judicial tenure. His career spanned several decades of significant change in American law and society, and his appointment represented an important milestone in the diversification of the federal judiciary.

Early life and legal career

Thomas Tang was born on January 11, 1922, in Phoenix, Arizona, where he spent his formative years. He was the son of a grocery store owner and attended public schools in the Phoenix area. His path to the legal profession was interrupted by military service during World War II. In 1942, Tang joined the United States Army through the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program and served as a First Lieutenant during the war.

Tang pursued his higher education at two institutions in the western United States. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Santa Clara University and subsequently obtained his Bachelor of Laws degree from the James E. Rogers College of Law at the University of Arizona. Following his legal education, Tang was again commissioned into the United States Army and deployed to serve on the Korean peninsula during the Korean War, demonstrating a continued commitment to military service during a critical period in American history.

In 1952, Tang resigned his commission in the Army and began his civilian legal career. After a brief period in private practice, he entered public service as Deputy County Attorney of Maricopa County, Arizona, a position he held from 1952 to 1957. This prosecutorial role provided him with substantial experience in criminal law and courtroom advocacy. He then advanced to serve as Assistant Attorney General of Arizona from 1957 to 1959, representing the state in legal matters and gaining broader exposure to governmental legal issues.

Tang's career took a turn toward public service and elected office when he successfully ran for the Phoenix City Council in 1960. This experience in municipal governance provided him with insight into local government operations and policy-making. His trajectory continued upward when he was elected as a Judge of the Superior Court of Arizona in 1963. During his tenure on the state trial court bench, Tang presided over numerous cases and encountered many attorneys who would later achieve prominence in the legal profession. Among those who appeared before him was Sandra Day O'Connor, who would later become the first woman appointed to the United States Supreme Court.

Tang's time on the Superior Court came to an end in 1970 when he lost his bid for judicial re-election. The defeat was attributed to a highly publicized juvenile murder trial over which he had presided, in which he faced accusations of being excessively lenient in his sentencing. Following this electoral setback, Tang returned to private practice, where he remained until his appointment to the federal bench.

Federal appellate service

President Jimmy Carter nominated Tang to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on August 29, 1977. The nomination was to fill a vacancy created by the departure of Judge Richard Harvey Chambers. Tang's nomination proceeded through the Senate confirmation process, and he was confirmed by the United States Senate on October 7, 1977. He received his formal commission five days later, on October 12, 1977, and began his service on the federal appellate court.

Tang served as an active circuit judge for sixteen years, hearing cases and writing opinions as part of the Ninth Circuit's work addressing appeals from federal district courts across the western United States, Alaska, Hawaii, and the Pacific territories. The Ninth Circuit is the largest of the federal appellate circuits by geographic area and population, and its docket encompasses a wide range of legal issues including immigration, environmental law, intellectual property, criminal appeals, and civil rights matters.

On October 12, 1993, Tang assumed senior status, a form of semi-retirement available to federal judges who meet certain age and service requirements. Senior status allows judges to continue hearing cases on a reduced schedule while creating a vacancy for a new active judge to be appointed. Tang's service on the Ninth Circuit, whether in active or senior status, continued until his death.

Tang died on July 18, 1995, at Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, after battling cancer. His death terminated his federal judicial service after nearly eighteen years on the bench. He was seventy-three years old at the time of his passing.

Jurisprudence and legacy

As the first American of Chinese descent to serve as a federal judge, Tang's appointment represented a significant breakthrough in the history of the federal judiciary. His elevation to the bench came during a period when the federal courts were beginning to reflect greater diversity, and his service helped pave the way for subsequent appointments of Asian American and other minority judges to the federal bench.

Tang's legacy extends beyond his judicial service through a national moot court competition established in his honor. In 1993, while Tang was still serving on the Ninth Circuit, the APA Law Student Association of the South Texas College of Law in Houston, Texas, created the Thomas Tang Moot Court Competition to recognize his contributions to the legal profession. The competition was later taken over by the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) Law Foundation and the NAPABA Judicial Council, which continue to administer it.

The competition honors Tang's reputation as a champion of individual rights and an advocate for the advancement of minority attorneys. He was recognized as an ardent supporter of NAPABA and of efforts to provide opportunities for Asian Pacific American law students. The moot court competition is designed to be open to all law students while particularly reaching out to Asian Pacific American students, providing them with opportunities to demonstrate their legal writing and oral advocacy skills and to compete for scholarships. Tang's wife, Dr. Pearl Tang, continued to support and promote the competition during her lifetime, helping to preserve her husband's legacy in the legal community.

Tang's career trajectory—from the son of a grocery store owner to a federal appellate judge—exemplified the possibilities of American legal and judicial service. His military service in two wars, his work as a prosecutor and state attorney general's office attorney, his experience in elected office, and his years on the state trial bench all contributed to the perspective he brought to the federal appellate court.