You might not expect a candid, insightful interview with a California Superior Court judge from a website affiliated with a lawfirm, but that’s what you get with a profile of Judge Teri L. Jackson at the “Zealous Women” site.

Judge Jackson is the first African-American woman to sit on the state’s Superior Court Bench, the interview notes, and that offers a different perspective.

You know,” Judge Jackson says in the interview, “I never looked at it as being a pioneer. I looked at it as a lot of people who had come before me who should have achieved what I have. I might have been the first to accomplish it, but there were many people who laid the path for me to walk, and they carried and dragged me along the way and still do. So I guess yes, you’re right, I’m the first to achieve this, but I’m not the first to go after this. And I am the beneficiary of a lot of people and a lot of sacrifices.”

She also tells about her father’s plan that his OTHER daughter would be the lawyer, about live-work balance with her “posse” and other issues. That includes this chilling advice for lawyers in her court: “Please understand we do read your briefs… reading verbatim your brief is not well-prepared.” [Read more…]

Since he was elected to the Santa Barbara Superior Court in 1996, Judge Frank Ochoa has made an impact on both the court system and his community. That commitment was honored in the final days of 2012 with the Santa Barbara County Bar Association’s “John T. Rickard Judicial Service Award.”

The honor is named after a former judge who also served terms as city attorney and mayor of Santa Barbara in the 1940s and 1950s.

Judge Ochoa sometimes makes national news in high-profile celebrity cases, like that controversy around Randy Quaid and his wife. But locally he is known for involvement in juvenile law programs and for handling a range of cases. He currently handles a criminal trial department with both felony and misdemeanor cases, and has handled the Juvenile Delinquency calendar for the court.

His experience has led to several state-level roles. He has served as a member of the California Judicial Council’s Trial Court Budget Commission and on the Presiding Judges’ Advisory Committee. Judge Ochoa has also served on the Executive Board of the California Judges’ Association, and has previously chaired the Association’s “Court Administration Committee.” 

He was also elected to the Executive Board of the Juvenile Court Judges of California and served on that group’s “legislative review team.”
Check out the judge’s formal bio here. Find out more about the recent award here.