Ronald M. Gould

Ronald Murray Gould (born October 17, 1946) is a United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit since 1999.

Gould was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He received a B.S. from University of Pennsylvania in 1968. He received a J.D. from University of Michigan in 1973. He was a law clerk, Hon. Wade H. McCree, Jr., U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit from 1973 to 1974. He was a law clerk, Justice Potter Stewart, Supreme Court of the United States, from 1974 to 1975. He was an adjunct professor, University of Washington Law School, from 1986 to 1989. He was in private practice of law in Seattle, Washington, from 1975 to 1999.

Gould is a federal judge to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Gould was nominated by President William J. Clinton on January 26, 1999, to a seat vacated by Robert Beezer. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on November 17, 1999, and received commission on November 22, 1999.

Education and legal training[]

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Gould received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Pennsylvania and his Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School in 1973. He then clerked for Judge Wade H. McCree of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit from 1973 to 1974 and Associate Justice Potter Stewart of the United States Supreme Court from 1974 to 1975.^[1]

Professional career[]

Gould was in private practice for Perkins Coie in Seattle, Washington from 1975 to 1999 and served as an adjunct professor at the University of Washington Law School from 1986 to 1989. He was a partner at Perkins Coie at the time of his appeals court nomination. He also was president of the Washington State Bar Association.^[1]

Federal judicial service[]

Gould was nominated by President Bill Clinton for a seat vacated by Judge Robert Beezer of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on January 26, 1999. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on November 17, 1999 in a voice vote and received his commission on November 22, 1999.^[1]

Notable cases[]

On July 13, 2013, Gould dissented from a denial of en banc when the 9th circuit upheld a ban on Greenpeace's protest against shell drilling. Gould, who was joined by Pregerson, Reinhardt, Wardlaw, Fletcher, and Milan Smith, saw this as a huge violation of 1st amendment rights, writing "The panel majority’s contrary conclusion will undermine the freedom of an organization to “stimulate [its] audience with spontaneous and emotional appeals for unity and action in a common cause.”" ^[2]

On August 23, 2019, Gould was one of three judges to rule that a prisoner with gender dysphoria had a right to sex reassignment surgery under the Eighth Amendment.^[3] Judge Margaret McKeown and district judge Robert Lasnik, sitting by designation, joined the opinion. The full Ninth Circuit refused to rehear the case en banc, although eight judges, all Republican appointees, dissented from the denial of rehearing.^[4]

Personal life[]

While still in private practice, Gould was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. During his time on the bench, he lost the use of his arms and legs; he now relies on a wheelchair for mobility, and with the aid of other technologies and of assistants and clerks is able to "get a good result in the work I'm doing."^[5]

See also[]

• List of Jewish American jurists
• List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States

References[]

External links[]

• Ronald M. Gould at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.