Zahid Quraishi
On June 10, the U.S. Senate confirmed Zahid Quraishi to the District Court of New Jersey—making him the first Muslim American federal judge in U.S. history.
The son of Pakistani immigrants, Quraishi was born in New York City and raised in Fanwood, N.J. After earning his law degree from Rutgers Law School, Quraishi joined the firm LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae. His first day of work was the day of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, an event that prompted him to enlist in the military.
After leaving the Army, Quraishi worked as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. attorney’s office in New Jersey for five years and as an assistant chief counsel at the Department of Homeland Security. In 2019, he was appointed as a magistrate judge for the District Court of New Jersey, becoming the first Asian American to serve on the federal bench in the state.