Jaime E. Esparza ’83
Alamdar S. Hamdani ‘99
Oct. 19, 2022— University of Houston Law Center alumni Jaime E. Esparza ’83 and Alamdar S. Hamdani ‘99 were nominated by President Joe Biden to serve as United States Attorneys in the Western and Southern Districts of Texas respectively.
Esparza and Hamdani are among several recent judicial and Department of Justice nominations announced by the Biden-Harris administration last Friday, Oct. 14. The White House stated in a release that the “individuals were chosen for their devotion to enforcing the law, their professionalism, their experience and credentials, their dedication to pursuing equal justice for all, and their commitment to the independence of the Department of Justice.”
If confirmed, Hamdani would be the first Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) to serve as a U.S. attorney in the state of Texas, according to an announcement from the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association.
Since 2014, Hamdani has served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas, where he focuses on international and domestic terrorism matters. The SDTX headquarters are in Houston with branch offices in Galveston, Corpus Christi, Brownsville, McAllen, Laredo and Victoria.
For the last six years, Hamdani as taught a course on terrorism and the law as an adjunct professor at the University of Houston Law Center. Hamdani received his J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center in 1999 and his B.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin in 1993.
If confirmed, Esparza would serve as the top federal prosecutor for the Western District of Texas, which has headquarters in San Antonio with additional offices in Austin, El Paso, Del Rio, Midland, Waco, and Alpine/Pecos.
From 1993 to 2020, Esparza served as a District Attorney for the 34th Judicial District of Texas located in El Paso. He received his J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center in 1983 and a B.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin in 1979.
