John W. Holcomb
Judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California
Incumbent
Assumed office September 18, 2020
Appointed by	Donald Trump
Preceded by	Dean Pregerson
Personal details
Born	John William Holcomb 1963 (age 60–61) Olean, New York, U.S.
Education	Massachusetts Institute of Technology (SB) Harvard University (JD–MBA)
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Navy
Years of service	1984–1989
Rank	Lieutenant
Unit	USS New Jersey (BB-62)
Awards	See list Joint Service Commendation Medal Navy E Ribbon Sea Service Deployment Ribbon

John William Holcomb (born 1963)^[1] is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California.

Early life and education

Holcomb was born in 1963 in Olean, New York. He attended Massachusetts Institute of Technology on a Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps scholarship, graduating in 1984 with a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering. He spent five years as an active duty military officer, then jointly attended Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School, receiving a JD–MBA in 1993. Holcomb received his Juris Doctor degree with cum laude honors.^[2]

Military service

Holcomb served in the United States Navy from 1980 to 1989, and he was on active duty as a commissioned officer from 1984 to 1989.^[2] His service included time as a Surface Warfare Officer aboard the battleship USS New Jersey (BB-62).

Legal career

After receiving his JD–MBA, Holcomb served as a law clerk to Judge Ronald Barliant of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois from 1993 to 1994. From 1994 to 1997, he was an associate with Irell & Manella. He practiced intellectual property law at Knobbe Martens from 1997 to 2018. In 2019 he was briefly a sole practitioner, before joining Greenberg Gross in Costa Mesa, California, where he focused on intellectual property and bankruptcy litigation. He left Greenberg Gross after becoming a federal judge.^[2]

Federal judicial service

On September 20, 2019, President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Holcomb to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California. On November 21, 2019, his nomination was sent to the Senate. President Trump nominated Holcomb to the seat vacated by Judge Dean Pregerson, who assumed senior status on January 28, 2016.^[3] On January 3, 2020, his nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate.^[4] On February 13, 2020, his renomination was sent to the Senate.^[5] On June 17, 2020, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.^[6] On July 23, 2020, his nomination was reported out of committee by a voice vote.^[7] On September 15, 2020, the Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by a 83–13 vote.^[8] His nomination was confirmed later that day by a 83–12 vote.^[9] He received his judicial commission on September 18, 2020.^[10]