José A. Cabranes
José A. Cabranes CC '61 is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the highest federal court that sits in New York. He was the first Puerto Rican to be appointed to a federal judgeship in the U.S., when he was confirmed as a federal court judge in Connecticut, and was an influential mentor to now-Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor throughout her life.
After his graduation from Columbia, where he was friends with former Attorney General Michael Mukasey, Cabranes studied law at Cambridge University on a Kellett Fellowship. Following his return, he earned a law degree at Yale. He has subsequently earned a John Jay Award and become one of the Columbia Trustees.
