NOVEMBER 16, 2023 American Kahani
- If confirmed, the 46-year-old would become the first Muslim American to serve on a federal appellate court in U.S. history.
Based in the James A. Byrne United States Courthouse in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit provides appellate review of cases tried in the United States District Courts within the geographic area of its jurisdiction, which includes Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Mangi’s nomination comes more than two years after Biden nominated Zahid N. Quraishi, the first Muslim to a federal district court, who was confirmed by the Senate for a judgeship in New Jersey. Biden nominated Quraishi, a federal magistrate judge and the son of Pakistani immigrants, in June 2021. He was confirmed by the Senate, 83 to 16.
Mangi’s nomination also “coincides with a backlash against Biden among Arab Americans following his declaration of unwavering support for Israel following the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants,” The Washington Post notes. The president has been facing “growing calls to pressure Israel to curtail its bombardment and ground offensive in the Gaza Strip,” it adds.
Currently a partner at Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP, Mangi is “a litigator with extensive experience,” according to the law firm’s website. He has “represented clients in a variety of industries in state and federal courts around the country across a range of subject matters, the website adds. He recently secured the largest jury verdict in the history of the Virginia court system with a $2 billion verdict after a seven-week jury trial in a case involving theft of trade secrets in the software industry. He also secured the largest settlement with New York state in history in cases involving the death of a state prison inmate on the morning of closing arguments after a two-and-a-half-week jury trial in the Southern District of New York.
He has litigated numerous high-profile civil rights cases as well, including “some of the most closely watched religious freedom cases of the Trump era, which involved two different Muslim communities denied permission to build mosques in Bernards Township and Bayonne,” the website notes.
Benchmark Litigation named him to its 2024 and 2023 lists of the “Top 100 Trial Lawyers” in the U.S.; as well as the 2024 and 2023 Litigation Star. It also awarded its ”Impact Case of the Year” recognition for 2023 to Mangi and his team. Earlier this year, he was named to The National Law Journal’s General Litigation Trailblazers list. Last year, he was featured in The American Lawyer’s ‘Litigators of the Week’ section in connection with a jury trial verdict.
He has written several amicus briefs in recent years that sought to block key initiatives of the previous administration, including a travel ban aimed at Muslim-majority countries, diverting federal funds to build a wall on the southern border, and an attempt to repeal the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
He began his legal career there as an associate in 2000, became counsel in 2009, and was elevated to partnership in 2010. He received his LL.M. from Harvard Law School. He qualified as a Barrister and received his Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Legal Skills from the City University London Inns of Court School of Law, and his First Class Degree in Law from the University of Oxford, Pembroke College. He lives in North Jersey with his wife and two children.