Quick Facts
Biography
Cynthia Holcomb Hall (February 19, 1929 – February 26, 2011) was a United States federal judge.
Early life and career
Born in Los Angeles, California, Hall received an A.B. from Stanford University in 1951, an LL.B. from Stanford Law School in 1954, and an LL.M. from New York University School of Law in 1960. She was a United States Naval Reserve Lieutenant, JAG Corps from 1951 to 1953. She was a law clerk, Hon. Richard Harvey Chambers, U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit from 1954 to 1955. She was a research assistant to the editor of the Tax Law Review from 1959 to 1960. She was a trial attorney of the Tax Division of the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. from 1960 to 1964, and an attorney advisor for the Office of Tax Legislative Counsel in the U.S. Department of the Treasury from 1964 to 1966. She was in private practice in Beverly Hills, California from 1966 to 1972.
Judicial career
In 1972, Hall was appointed by President Richard Nixon to a seat on the United States Tax Court. On October 14, 1981, President Ronald Reagan nominated Hall to a seat on the United States District Court for the Central District of California vacated by Harry Pregerson. Hall was confirmed by the United States Senate on November 18, 1981, and received her commission the same day.
On August 1, 1984, Reagan nominated Hall for elevation to a new seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit created by 98 Stat. 333. She was confirmed by the United States Senate on October 3, 1984, and received her commission on October 4, 1984. She assumed senior status on August 31, 1997.
Death
Hall died of cancer at her home in Pasadena, California on February 26, 2011 at the age of 82.