In a historic confirmation for the United States and especially Puerto Rico, the Honorable Gina R. Méndez-Miró has been chosen to serve for the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico. She was the 100th judge to confirmed by Senate Democrats and is the first openly LGBTQ+ judge to hold her position in Puerto Rico. Méndez-Miró’s confirmation additionally marks the first time the territory has had a full complement of district judges since 2020.
Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Judge Méndez-Miró earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Puerto Rico in 1996; a Masters of Arts degree from Princeton University in 1998; and a Juris Doctor from the University of Puerto School of Law in 2001. She began her legal career as an associate at O’Neill & Borges LLC, where she worked for five years at the labor and employment department. In 2006, she entered public service by joining the Puerto Rico Department of Justice as assistant attorney general for human resources, and she was eventually designated as a special prosecutor managing criminal cases.
Later, Méndez-Miró served for five years in the office of courts administration for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Judicial Branch; the first two years as the director of judicial programs, and three years as general counsel and director of the legal affairs office; providing legal counsel and litigating significant legal claims and disciplinary actions before both state and federal judicial and administrative forums.
She then served as chief of staff for the president of the senate of Puerto Rico, where she dealt with legal matters arising from public administration, government ethics and contracting from 2013 to 2016. Most recently, Judge Méndez-Miró served as an appeals judge for the court of appeals for the commonwealth of Puerto Rico from 2016 until her appointment to the federal bench.
On a more personal note, Méndez-Miró is the wife of Chief Justice Maite Oronoz Rodríguez, the first openly gay chief justice.
Méndez-Miró was officially sworn into her position on March 1 of this year by Chief United States District Judge, Raúl M. Arias-Marxuach, and was confirmed in a 54-to-45 vote by the senate.
“Today’s ceremony marks the first time the court has its full complement of district judges since 2020,” Chief Judge Arias-Marxuach said during the confirmation ceremony. “Judge Méndez-Miró brings diverse legal experiences derived from service in prominent positions in all three branches of the government of the commonwealth of Puerto Rico. I wish Judge Méndez-Miró every success during her federal judicial service.”
Besides the history she’s made among the LGBTQ+ community, Méndez-Miró also further diversifies the district court for the district of Puerto Rico, being the third woman to join the courts.
“Our courts should reflect the diversity of our nation,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer stated in a press release. “With the confirmation of Gina Méndez-Miro, we’ll now have three female jurists in the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, strengthening the legal expertise on that bench and bringing much needed gender diversity to Puerto Rico’s federal courts. I am proud of the historic progress this Senate Democratic majority has made in confirming 100 well-qualified and diverse nominees.”
Sources: United States District Court: District of Puerto Rico, White House, Senate Democrats, NBC, Wikipedia
