Ryan Y. Park


Ryan Young Park is an American lawyer who served as the solicitor general of North Carolina from 2022 to 2025. In 2024, he was nominated by President Joe Biden to serve as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, but, lacking support in the US Senate committee for confirmation, his nomination did not see a vote.
Park represented the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the Supreme Court case Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina, a companion case to Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Early life and education

The son of Korean immigrants, Park was born in Fridley, Minnesota, in 1983 and grew up in Shoreview, Minnesota. His mother moved from Korea to North Carolina to pursue a degree in library science at East Carolina University.
Park enrolled at Amherst College, receiving his Bachelor of Arts in economics and political science with distinction in 2005 as president of the college's student government. From 2006 to 2007, he was a Fulbright Scholar teaching English at a boys' school in South Korea. He graduated from Harvard Law School in 2010 with a Juris Doctor, summa cum laude.

Career

After graduating from law school, he served as a law clerk for Judges Jed S. Rakoff of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York from 2010 to 2011 and Robert Katzmann of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from 2011 to 2012. From 2013 to 2014, he clerked for Justices David Souter and Ruth Bader Ginsburg of the Supreme Court of the United States.
Park served as a legal counsel for the Legal Adviser of the Department of State from 2012 to 2013. From 2014 to 2017, he was an associate at Boies Schiller Flexner LLP. He served as a deputy solicitor general of North Carolina from 2017 to 2020. On March 31, 2022, he became the solicitor general.
Park was a lecturer at Duke University and the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Failed nomination to court of appeals

On July 3, 2024, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Park to serve as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Senators Thom Tillis and Ted Budd issued a joint statement objecting to the nomination. Tillis said he had informed the White House in April that he had obtained enough support to block Park's nomination, but that the White House had declined to put forth an alternative nominee with bipartisan support. On July 8, 2024, Park's nomination was sent to the Senate. President Biden nominated Park to the seat being vacated by Judge James Andrew Wynn, who announced his intent to assume senior status upon confirmation of a successor. On July 31, 2024, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee. During his confirmation hearing, Park faced criticism over his work for then-North Carolina attorney general Josh Stein. Republican members of the committee "took aim at Park's record as North Carolina solicitor general, trying to position him as a political activist rather than an impartial arbiter of the law." U.S. Senator John Kennedy questioned whether Park had failed to zealously defend a North Carolina voter identification law in his role with the attorney general's office, or if he had intentionally thrown the case for political purposes. On November 14, 2024, his nomination was reported out of committee by an 11–10 party line vote. Lacking the votes for confirmation, his nomination did not see a vote before the full Senate. On December 12, 2024, the White House officially withdrew his nomination.

Personal life

Park is married to Eunee Kathleen, whom he met while they were both undergraduates at Amherst College.