Moxila A. Upadhyaya

Some Lesser Known Facts About Moxila A. Upadhyaya

• Moxila A. Upadhyaya is an Indo-American magistrate judge who was appointed on 7 September 2022 to serve a term of eight years. She became well-known for overseeing the court appearance of former US President Donald Trump in a federal courthouse located in Washington DC. During the appearance, Trump entered a plea of not guilty.

• Shortly after her birth, Moxila’s family moved to Kansas City, Missouri, USA.

• While pursuing her Juris Doctor (JD) degree at American University’s Washington College of Law, she stood out for her impressive trial work and representation of clients in the Criminal Justice Clinic. Additionally, she was a member of the Administrative Law Review.

• After completing her law studies, Moxila worked as a law clerk for Eric T Washington, the former Chief Judge of the DC Court of Appeals, for a period of two years.

• After her term as a law clerk, she joined Venable LLP, a private law firm located in Washington DC, where she specialized in complex commercial and administrative litigation.

• In 2009, Moxila A. Upadhyaya received the Defender of Innocence Award from the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project for her successful representation of a client who was wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for 19 years for a murder he did not commit.

• During 2011-2012, Moxila worked as the first law clerk for the Honorable Robert L. Wilkins while he served as a District Judge in the United States District of Columbia Court.

• In 2013, Moxila returned to Venable LLP, where she worked as an associate and later became a partner. During her time at the firm, she focused her pro bono efforts on representing indigent clients in post-conviction proceedings, including those who raised challenges under the D.C. Innocence Protection Act and the D.C. Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act.

• She also served as the Co-Chair of the Steering Committee for the Litigation Section of the District of Columbia (D.C.) Bar. She has also been a member of the Board of Directors for both the District of Columbia (D.C.) Access to Justice Foundation and the Council for Court Excellence.

• On 1 January 2021, she was appointed to serve as a member of the United States District Court Committee on Grievances for a two-year term, which will end on 31 December 2023.

• Moxila holds fellowships with the American Bar Foundation, District of Columbia Bar, and Maryland State Bar Association.

• She is a mentor for the Abramson Scholarship Foundation.