Alex Padilla: “I rise today to urge my colleagues to join me in confirming Justice Gabriel Sanchez to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the…”

“I rise today to urge my colleagues to join me in confirming Justice Gabriel Sanchez to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Justice Sanchez has long be held in high esteem in California's legal circles. He brings thoughtfulness and empathy to every decision that he makes. He was born and raised in Los Angeles and was the proud son of a single mother from Mexico. She raised him while working tirelessly to make ends meet. With her unwavering support, Justice Sanchez went on to earn degrees from Yale College, from Cambridge University, and graduated from Yale Law School. He began his legal career as a law clerk to Judge Richard Paez on the Ninth Circuit, the same court where he is now nominated to serve. Justice Sanchez then went into private practice, as many young lawyers do, but he committed himself to engaging in the community deeply by providing pro bono legal services, so much so that in the year 2010, he earned a social justice award from the ACLU of Southern California for his work representing farm workers in a lawsuit to enforce workplace safety protections to help prevent deadly heat illnesses. Justice Sanchez went on to serve with distinction in California State government; first, as a deputy attorney general, and then as a deputy legal affairs secretary to then-Governor Brown. There, he proved himself to be a critical thinker, a creative problem-solver, and a dedicated public servant.…”