Armando Bonilla, who has a chance to become the first Hispanic judge on the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, hopes his nomination will start a trend for future generations.

President Barack Obama nominated Bonilla, who is currently a Department of Justice associate deputy attorney general, in May, NBC News reports. If Bonilla is confirmed by Senate, he will see a 15-year-long term alongside 15 other judges. The judges rule on cases filed against the federal government regarding "primarily money claims founded upon the Constitution, federal statutes, executive regulations, or contracts, express or implied in fact, with the United States," such as lawsuits about tax refunds, according to the court's official website.

According to Bonilla, 101 judges have served on the court since the time of Former President Franklin Pierce, the country's 14th, NBC News reports.

"As exciting as it is to be the first Hispanic to achieve something, my wish for future generations, including my own children ... is that we replace the word first with yet another," Bonilla said in a Hispanic Heritage Month speech at the DOJ.

During his speech, Bonilla also recalled his childhood, when he used to clean law offices with his parents at night. Before he was ashamed of it, but the act inspired him to become a lawyer and he now thinks of his past "as a badge of honor."

"The day I was formally sworn into the Bar, my Dad, who was 5-feet-6 on a good day, walked around as if he were 7 feet tall," Bonilla said.

After working as a federal judge law clerk in New Jersey, Bonilla joined the DOJ's Civil Division's commercial litigation branch in 1994.

"I have spent the last two decades doing my best to earn the opportunity of a lifetime that I was given ... and I have loved every minute," he said.

In his speech, Bonilla, whose mother is an immigrant from Cuba and whose father is a Cuban-American, also encouraged those involved with music and dance to follow their dreams.

"Don't bid against yourself ... There will be enough people out there telling you 'no' or suggest that you set more realistic expectations or achievable goals," he said. "You should not be one of those people. Do not hold yourself back."

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Follow Scharon Harding on Twitter: @ScharHar.

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