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Rodolfo Ruiz

Image of Rodolfo Ruiz

United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida

Tenure

2019 - Present

Years in position

Prior offices

Florida 11th Circuit Court

Education

Contact

Rodolfo Armando "Rudy" Ruiz II is a judge on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. On May 7, 2018, President Donald Trump (R) nominated Ruiz to a seat on this court. The U.S. Senate confirmed Ruiz on May 2, 2019, by a vote of 90-8.^[1]^[2] He received commission on May 3, 2019.^[3] To see a full list of judges appointed by Donald Trump, click here.

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida is one of 94 U.S. district courts. They are the general trial courts of the United States federal courts. To learn more about the court, click here.

Ruiz was a judge of the Florida 11th Circuit Court, Civil Division, from 2015 to 2019. Gov. Rick Scott (R) appointed Ruiz to the state's 11th Circuit in November 2014 to succeed Judge Beth Bloom.^[4]

Before his appointment to the 11th Judicial Circuit Court, Ruiz served as a judge on the Miami-Dade County Court in Florida. Gov. Rick Scott (R) appointed Ruiz to this bench in April 2012.^[5]

Judicial nominations, appointments, and elections

United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida

See also: Federal judges nominated by Donald Trump

On May 7, 2018, President Donald Trump (R) nominated Ruiz to a seat on the Southern District of Florida. The U.S. Senate confirmed Ruiz on May 2, 2019, by a vote of 90-8.^[1]^[2] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.

Nomination Tracker

Nominee Information
Name: Rodolfo Ruiz
Court: United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
Progress
Confirmed 360 days after nomination.
Nominated: May 7, 2018
ABA Rating: Unanimously Well Qualified
Questionnaire: Questionnaire
Hearing: June 20, 2018

QFRs: QFRs (Hover over QFRs to read more)

Reported: July 19, 2018 (first)/February 7, 2019 (second)
Confirmed: May 2, 2019
Vote: 90-8

Confirmation vote

The U.S. Senate confirmed Ruiz on May 2, 2019, on a vote of 90-8.^[2] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.

Ruiz confirmation vote (May 2, 2019)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	36	7	2
Republican	53	0	0
Independent	1	1	0
Total	90	8	2

Change in Senate rules

See also:

Filibuster and reconciliation in the United States Congress

Federal judges nominated by Donald Trump

United States federal courts

Ruiz was the eighth judge to be confirmed to a U.S. District Court under a new precedent the Senate established.

On April 3, 2019, the U.S. Senate voted 51-48 in favor of a change to chamber precedent lowering the maximum time allowed for debate on executive nominees to posts below the Cabinet level and on nominees to district court judgeships from 30 hours after invoking cloture to two.^[6]

The change was passed under a procedure, often referred to as the nuclear option, that requires 51 votes rather than 60.^[7]

It was the third use of the nuclear option in Senate history. In 2013, it was used to eliminate the 60-vote threshold to confirm presidential nominees, except those to the Supreme Court. In 2017, it was used to eliminate the 60-vote threshold required to confirm Supreme Court nominees.^[8] For more, see Filibuster and reconciliation in the United States Congress.

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

Hearings on Ruiz's nomination were held on June 20, 2018. The Senate Judiciary Committee reported his nomination out of committee on July 19, 2018.^[9]^[10]

The Senate Judiciary Committee favorably reported Ruiz's nomination on February 7, 2019.^[11] Click here to see how the committee voted. Ruiz's nomination was one of 44 that Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) reported that day.

Nomination

Ruiz was nominated to succeed Judge William Zloch, who assumed senior status on January 31, 2017.^[2]

At the sine die adjournment of the 115th Congress on January 3, 2019, the Senate returned Ruiz's nomination to President Trump.^[12] Ruiz was one of 51 individuals the president re-nominated on January 23, 2019.^[13]

The American Bar Association unanimously rated Ruiz well qualified.^[14] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.

Florida 11th Circuit Court (2015-2019)

Ruiz was a judge of the Florida 11th Circuit Court, Civil Division, from 2015 to 2019. Gov. Rick Scott (R) appointed Ruiz to the state's 11th Circuit in November 2014 to succeed Judge Beth Bloom.^[4]

Miami-Dade County Court (2012-2014)

Ruiz served as a judge on the Miami-Dade County Court in Florida from 2012 to 2014. Gov. Rick Scott (R) appointed Ruiz to this bench in April 2012.^[5]

2014 election

See also: Florida judicial elections, 2014

Ruiz ran for re-election to the Miami-Dade County Court. As an unopposed candidate, he was automatically re-elected without appearing on the ballot.^[15]

Early life and education

Ruiz was born in Miami, Florida, in 1979. He received his B.S. from Duke University in 2002 and his J.D. degree from the Georgetown University Law Center in 2005. During his legal studies, Ruiz was an articles editor for the Georgetown Law Center's American Criminal Law Review from 2003 to 2005. He attended the London School of Economics from 2001 to 2002 but did not receive a degree.^[16]

Professional career

2019-present: Judge, United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
2015-2019: Judge, Florida 11th Circuit Court
2012-2014: Judge, Miami-Dade County Court, Florida
2009-2012: Assistant county attorney, Miami-Dade County Attorney's Office
2006-2008: Attorney, White and Case LLP
2005-2006: Law clerk to Judge Federico Moreno, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida^[16]

Awards and associations

Awards

2018: Hispanic Heritage Judicial Trailblazer Award, Dade County Bar Association
2017: Distinguished Service Award for Commitment to Eliminate Bias in the Judicial System, Coalition of Southern Florida Muslim Organizations
2015: Award of Recognition, Miami Beach Bar Association
2014: Distinguished Leadership Award, Florida Conference of County Court Judges
2013: Justice for All Award for Outstanding Contributions to Victims of Crime, Coral Gables Police Department

Associations

Member, Florida Conference of Circuit Court Judges
Member, American Bar Association
Member, The Federalist Society
Member, Dade County Bar Association
Member, Federal Bar Association
Member, Hispanic National Bar Association
Member, Florida Association for Women Lawyers
Member, Cuban-American Bar Association
Member, Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. Bar Association
Member, Gwen S. Cherry Black Women Lawyer's Association
Member, Florida Muslim Bar Association
Member, Coral Gables Bar Association
Member, Miami Beach Bar Association
Member, South Miami Kendall Bar Association
Former member, Florida Conference of County Court Judges^[16]

About the court

Southern District of Florida
Eleventh Circuit

Judgeships
Posts: 18
Judges: 17
Vacancies: 1
Judges
Chief: Cecilia Altonaga
Active judges: Roy Altman, Cecilia Altonaga, Jacqueline Becerra, Beth Bloom, Aileen Cannon, Melissa Damian, William Dimitrouleas, Darrin P. Gayles, David Leibowitz, Jose E. Martinez, Donald Middlebrooks, Kevin M. Moore, Robin L. Rosenberg, Rodolfo Ruiz, Anuraag Singhal, Rodney Smith, Kathleen M. Williams Senior judges: James Cohn, Jose Gonzalez, Donald Graham, Paul Huck, Daniel Hurley, James King, Joan Lenard, Kenneth Marra, Federico Moreno, Robert N. Scola Jr., Patricia Seitz, William Zloch

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida is one of 94 United States district courts. The district operates out of courthouses in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Fort Pierce. When decisions of the court are appealed, they are appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit based in downtown Atlanta at the Elbert P. Tuttle Federal Courthouse.

The Southern District of Florida has original jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.

The district includes the South Florida metropolitan area of Fort Lauderdale, Fort Pierce, Miami and West Palm Beach. It comprises 15,197 square miles and approximately 6.3 million people. Court offices are in Miami, Florida.^[17]

The following counties are in the Southern District of Florida:

To read opinions published by this court, click here.

The federal nomination process

Federal judges are nominated by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate. There are multiple steps to the process:

The president nominates an individual for a judicial seat.
The nominee fills out a questionnaire and is reviewed by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing with the nominee, questioning them about things like their judicial philosophy, past rulings or opinions, etc.

As part of this process, the committee sends a blue slip to senators from the home state in which the judicial nomination was received, allowing them to express their approval or disapproval of the nominee.

After the hearing, the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote to approve or return the nominee.

If approved, the nominee is voted on by the full Senate.
If the Committee votes to return the nominee to the president, the president has the opportunity to re-nominate the individual.

The Senate holds a vote on the candidate.

If the Senate confirms the nomination, the nominee receives a commission to serve a lifelong position as a federal judge.
If the Senate does not confirm the nomination, that nominee does not become a judge.