Judge José A. Suarez was born in San Juan Puerto Rico in 1966 and moved to Connecticut in 1977. He graduated from the University of Dayton in 1989 with a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies and received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Connecticut School of Law in 1993.

Judge Suarez was nominated to the Appellate Court by Governor Ned Lamont on July 20, 2020 and was sworn in on August 12, 2020. Prior to his appointment, Judge Suarez served as a Superior Court judge, having been appointed by Governor M. Jodi Rell in February 2009.

While a Superior Court judge, Judge Suarez served as the Administrative Judge for the Middlesex Judicial District and the Presiding Judge for criminal and civil matters. He also served in the Hartford Judicial District as the Presiding Judge for family matters, and as a criminal trial judge. In addition, Judge Suarez heard criminal, family and juvenile matters in the Tolland Judicial District.

Prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge Suarez was an Assistant Attorney General, where he represented the State of Connecticut in complex litigation matters.