Albert Diaz (judge)
| Albert Diaz | |
|---|---|
| Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit | |
|
Assumed office December 22, 2010 |
|
| Appointed by | Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | William Wilkins |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1960 (age 56–57) New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Alma mater |
University of Pennsylvania New York University Boston University |
Albert Diaz (born 1960) is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Diaz is the first Hispanic judge to serve the Fourth Circuit. Prior to his appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals, Diaz was a North Carolina state superior court judge and an Appellate Judge for the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals.
Raised in Brooklyn as the son of divorced Puerto Rican parents, Diaz and his two brothers were raised by his mother. After graduating high school, he enlisted in the Marines.
Diaz earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1983 and earned a law degree from New York University School of Law in 1988. Diaz earned a master of business administration degree from Boston University, in 1993. Diaz also served with the Marines from 1988-1995 as a Judge Advocate for the U.S. Marines, retiring as a Lt. Colonel, USMCR.
While in the Marines, Diaz served as a prosecutor, defense lawyer and judge. He left the service in 1995 for private practice, becoming an associate with the law firm of Hunton & Williams and represented Philip Morris USA during tobacco lawsuits in the late 1990s. Also from 2000-2005 Diaz served as a Military Judge for the U.S. Navy-Marine Corps Trial Judiciary and as an Appellate Judge for the U.S. Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals.
In 2001, then-North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley appointed Diaz to the North Carolina Superior Court, making Diaz the first Hispanic ever to be a state judge in North Carolina. The following year, Diaz lost a bid for election. However, Easley again appointed Diaz to the Superior Court. Then, in 2005, the North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice appointed Diaz to be Charlotte, North Carolina's first ever Business Court judge, one of just three in the state.
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