Ryan Douglas Nelson at a glance
- Current role
- Judge
- Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- Jurisdiction
- National federal courts · Federal
- Judicial service
- October 18, 2018–present
Ryan Douglas Nelson
Judge · U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Available research
Biography
Professional career
- general counsel emeritus, 2017-2018
- assistant secretary, 2013-2018
- general counsel, 2009-2017
- Melaleuca, Inc., Idaho Falls, ID, 2009-2018
- Special counsel, U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, 2009-present
- Deputy general counsel, Office of Management and Budget, Executive Office of the President, 2008-2009
- Deputy assistant attorney general, Environment and Natural Resources Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 2006-2008
- Private practice, Washington, D.C., 2001-2006
- Law clerk, Hon. Charles N. Brower and Richard M. Mosk, Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal, The Hague, 2000-2001
Judicial service
- Law Clerk, Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, 1999-2000
- Judge, Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 2018-present
- Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Education
- Brigham Young University-Provo · B.A., 1996
- J. Reuben Clark Law School
- Brigham Young University
- Idaho Falls High School
Personal record
Born 1973 · Idaho Falls, ID
Courtroom rules and guidance
Appellate Oral Argument
In federal courts of appeals, oral argument is allowed unless a three-judge panel unanimously finds one of Rule 34's specified grounds for dispensing with it; the clerk provides the date, time, place, and time allocation.
Oral argument must be allowed in every case unless a panel of three judges who have examined the briefs and record unanimously agrees that oral argument is unnecessaryFederal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument ↗
Sources
Federal Judicial Center biography
Identity source · HTML · checked July 25, 2026
https://www.fjc.gov/node/5373051CourtListener judicial biographical directory
Identity source · HTML · checked August 2, 2026
https://www.courtlistener.com/person/8609/ryan-douglas-nelson/Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument
Judge research source · HTML · checked July 26, 2026
https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-appellate-procedure