Background
The son of a grocery owner, Tang spent his early years in Phoenix, Arizona, where he attended public schools.
The son of a grocery owner, Tang spent his early years in Phoenix, Arizona, where he attended public schools.
After graduation from the University of Santa Clara (Bachelor) and the University of Arizona College of Law (Bachelor of Laws), he was again commissioned to the Army and served on the Korean peninsula during the Korean War.
He joined the military through Reserve Officers Training Corps in 1942 and became a First Lieutenant in the United States Army. In 1952, Tang resigned from the Army and after a brief stint of private practice, served as Deputy County Attorney of Maricopa, Arizona in 1952-1957 and Assistant Attorney General of Arizona in 1957-1959. He was then elected to the Phoenix City Council of Phoenix in 1960, and a Judge of the Superior Court of Arizona in 1963.
During his tenure as Superior Court Judge, numerous lawyers who later rose to great eminence appeared before him, former United States. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O"Connor being one of them.
After losing his judicial re-election in 1970, due to a highly publicized juvenile murder trial in which he was accused for being too lenient, Tang returned to private practice. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter appointed Tang as a United States Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit.
Tang served for sixteen years before he took senior status in 1993. In 1993, the APA Law Student Association of the South Texas College of Law, Houston, Texas, (including law students Kevin Pham, John Tang and Monica Tjoa) named a national moot court competition in Tang"s honor.
The Thomas Tang Moot Court Competition is now administered by the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) Law Foundation and the NAPABA Judicial Council.
Judge Tang’s wife, Doctor Pearl Tang, continues the legacy and participates every year. The Competition is open to all students but is especially designed to reach out to APA law students and provide them with an opportunity to showcase their writing and oral skills and compete for scholarships totaling $10,000.
Member of State Bar California, State Bar Arizona (board governors 1971-1977, president 1977).