Richard Seeborg

Richard Gus Seeborg^[1] (born November 4, 1956) is the chief United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. He formerly served as a United States magistrate judge in the same district.

Richard Seeborg
Seeborg in 2019
Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
Incumbent
Assumed office February 1, 2021
Preceded by	Phyllis J. Hamilton
Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
Incumbent
Assumed office January 4, 2010
Appointed by	Barack Obama
Preceded by	Maxine M. Chesney
Magistrate Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
In office February 9, 2001 – January 4, 2010
Succeeded by	Donna Ryu
Personal details
Born	Richard Gus Seeborg (1956-11-04) November 4, 1956 (age 68) Landstuhl, West Germany
Education	Yale University (BA) Columbia University (JD)

Early life and education

Seeborg was born in 1956 in Landstuhl town, Kaiserslautern district, Rhineland-Palatinate state, Germany.^[2]

Seeborg received a Bachelor of Arts summa cum laude with a major in history from Yale University in May 1978 and a Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School in 1981.^[3]

From 1981 to 1982, Seeborg served as a law clerk to Judge John H. Pratt of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.^[3][4]

Career

In 1982, Seeborg joined the San Francisco law firm of Morrison & Foerster as an associate.^[3] He became a partner with the firm in 1987.^[3] In 1991, Seeborg left Morrison & Foerster to become an assistant United States attorney for the Northern District of California in San Jose, California.^[3] He served in that post until 1998, when he returned to Morrison & Foerster, working as a partner and focusing on a litigation practice in the fields of securities, intellectual property, and general commercial matters.^[3][4]

Federal judicial service

On February 9, 2001, Seeborg became a United States magistrate judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.^[3][4]

On August 7, 2009, President Barack Obama nominated Seeborg to be a United States district judge on the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.^[5] On October 15, 2009, the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary voted to send Seeborg's nomination to the full Senate.^[6] The Senate confirmed Seeborg by unanimous consent on December 24, 2009. He received his commission on January 4, 2010.^[4] He became chief judge on February 1, 2021, after Phyllis J. Hamilton assumed senior status.^[7]

Notable rulings

• On March 6, 2019, Seeborg ruled that United States Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross could not add a question about citizenship to the 2020 United States Census.^[8][9]

• On April 8, 2019, Seeborg ruled that non-Mexican asylum seekers did not have to stay in Mexico while awaiting their court proceedings.^[10]

Personal

Seeborg resides in San Francisco, California.^[6]