Judge José Antonio Fusté (1943, San Juan, Puerto Rico - ), a United States District Judge, is the former Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, a court which in recent years has seen the influx of three new, relatively young judges, including the court's second female member and current Chief Judge, former U.S. magistrate Aida Delgado, attorney Francisco Besosa and forty-something former U.S. magistrate Gustavo Gelpí.
Fusté received a B.B.A. from the University of Puerto Rico in 1965, and an LL.B. from the University of Puerto Rico Law School in 1968. He was in private practice in San Juan from 1968 to 1985, and began teaching Admiralty law at the University of Puerto Rico in 1972.
On September 27, 1985, he was nominated by President Ronald Reagan to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico vacated by Juan R. Torruella. Fusté was confirmed by the United States Senate on October 25, 1985, and received his commission on October 28, 1985. He has served as chief since 2004.
In October, 2007, Chief Judge Fusté appointed acting United States Attorney Rosa Emilia Rodríguez to a four-year extension of her term, until October 12, 2011, which can only be cut short if Rodríguez' formal nomination by President Bush as U.S. Attorney is voted down by the United States Senate or if Bush's successor appoints a new acting United States Attorney.
Judge Fusté's request to withdraw as a member of the Puerto Rico Bar Association, a compulsory membership organization, was approved by the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico.
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| Preceded by Juan R. Torruella |
Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico October 28, 1985 – 2011 |
Succeeded by Aida Delgado |