Newsom appoints 10 Superior Court judges

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday the appointment of 10 judges to California's superior courts, naming new jurists in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Alameda, Fresno, Lake, Orange, San Mateo and Shasta counties.

In Los Angeles County, Newsom appointed Alma D. Puente, who has owned her own law office since 2010. She previously worked as a senior attorney at the Law Office of Enrique Arevalo from 2006 to 2010, an associate at Kaplan, Klein & Rogen from 2005 to 2006, and as a supervisory adjudications officer for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security from 2004 to 2005. She received her law degree from Loyola Law School and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge John J. Kralik.

Also in Southern California, Allison Chan was appointed to the Orange County Superior Court. Chan has been a senior deputy public defender since 2025 and previously served as a deputy public defender there from 2013 to 2024. She earned her law degree from Loyola Law School and fills the vacancy left by the retirement of Judge Erick L. Larsh.

Two appointments were announced for the San Francisco County Superior Court.

Christopher Hu has served as a deputy solicitor general at the California Department of Justice since 2023. His prior experience includes work as an associate at Horvitz & Levy, Moskovitz Appellate Team, and Rosen Bien Galvan & Grunfeld. He clerked for the California Supreme Court and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Hu received his law degree from Stanford Law School and fills the vacancy created by the death of Judge Andrew Y.S. Cheng.

Dane Reinstedt has served as an assistant district attorney in San Francisco since 2015. He previously worked as an associate at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan. Reinstedt earned his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Garrett L. Wong.

Elsewhere in the state, Newsom made the following appointments:

Novella Coleman, of Santa Clara County, was appointed to the Alameda County Superior Court. Coleman has been an assistant chief counsel at the California Civil Rights Department since 2023. She previously served as litigation director at Bay Area Legal Aid, a staff attorney at PolicyLink, and an attorney at the ACLU Foundation of Northern California. She received her law degree from Harvard Law School and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Jo-Lynne Q. Lee.

Kathleen Vermazen Radez was also appointed to the Alameda County Superior Court. Radez has served as a deputy city attorney at the San Francisco City Attorney's Office since 2024 and previously worked as a supervising chambers attorney at the California Supreme Court. Her background includes service at the California Department of Justice, clerkships with the California Supreme Court and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, and work as an associate at Morrison & Foerster. She received her law degree from Columbia Law School and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Julia A. Spain.

In Fresno County, David Chiappetta was appointed to the Superior Court. Chiappetta has been a partner at Perkins Coie since 2013 and previously practiced with Corrs Chambers Westgarth, McCutchen Doyle Brown Enersen, and Seltzer Caplan McMahon Vitek. He earned his law degree from the University of Washington School of Law and fills the vacancy created by the elevation of Judge Arlan L. Harrell to the Court of Appeal.

Commissioner John Langan was elevated to judge on the Lake County Superior Court. Langan has served as a commissioner at that court since 2019 and previously held multiple roles at the Lake County District Attorney's Office, including senior deputy district attorney. Earlier in his career, he worked as a deputy public defender in Sonoma County. He received his law degree from the University of San Francisco School of Law and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Andrew S. Blum.

In San Mateo County, Commissioner Jennifer M. Frost was elevated to a judgeship. Frost has served as a commissioner since 2024 and previously worked as a deputy district attorney in San Mateo County, as well as an assistant district attorney in San Francisco. She also practiced family law in private practice. Frost earned her law degree from the University of San Francisco School of Law and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Virgil R. Swope.

Ryan Birss, of Siskiyou County, was appointed to the Shasta County Superior Court. Birss has owned his own law practice since 2018 and previously worked as an associate at Eric Alan Berg and Associates. He received his law degree from the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco, and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Monique D. McKee.