The first Korean immigrants to the United States arrived in Hawaii in 1903.
The first Korean American elected to any public office in the United States was in Hawaii in 1954.
Thus, it is not surprising that the first Korean American federal judge came from Hawaii.
In 1971, Herbert Young Cho Choy was nominated by President Richard Nixon and confirmed by the United States Senate to serve on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
As the first Korean American lawyer in the nation, Judge Choy was not just a Korean American trailblazer. He was the first Asian American and the first Hawaiian to sit on the federal bench anywhere.
Following Judge Choy, there have been 15 other Americans of Korean ancestry who have been federal judges, nominated by Presidents of both political parties. They represent nearly ten states and all genders.
While there has yet to be a Korean American on the United States Supreme Court, there have been six appellate judges, serving at the next highest level of the federal judicial system.
At the trial level, there have been nine Korean Americans on the United States District Courts and the U.S. Court of International Trade.
Additionally, a Korean American has served on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
While this is technically a state/local court, it is considered to be in the federal system as it follows the process of being nominated by a President and confirmed by the United States Senate.
However, unlike judges appointed under the authority of Article III of the United States Constitution, D.C. court judges serve a fixed term of service, not for their lifetimes.