The Hon. Hanley Chew is a judge for the Santa Clara County Superior Court in California. He was appointed to the bench by Governor Gavin Newsom on November 10, 2021, filling a vacancy created by the retirement of the Hon. Mark H. Pierce.
Prior to his appointment, Chew was Of Counsel at Fenwick & West, a position to which he was named in 2016. Before that, he spent one year as Vice President at Stroz Friedberg (2015 to 2016).
Chew earned a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University. He then completed a J.D. at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.
After graduating from law school, Chew entered into private practice, working as an associate at LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae (1995 to 1996); Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati (1996 to 1998; 1999 to 2001); and Coblentz, Patch, Duffy & Bass (1998 to 1999). Then, in 2002, Chew joined the Office of the United States Attorney for the Central District Attorney.
Chew spent the next two years as an Assistant United States Attorney before returning to private practice in 2004. He joined Jones Day Reavis & Pogue, where he worked as its senior litigation associate. He held this position for one year, eventually leaving to become an Assistant United States Attorney with the Office of the United States Attorney for the Northern District of California.
His memberships have included the Asian American Legal Defense Fund and the Asian Americans for Community Involvement.
Raised in a housing project in New York City’s Chinatown, Chew was a resident of Mountain View, California, at the time of his appointment.
He is registered as a Democrat.