Associate Justice
California Courts of Appeal
4th Appellate District, Division 3
Department/Division:
3
Days:
M-F
601 W Santa Ana Blvd
Santa Ana , CA 92701
(714) 571-2600
Nominated by Gov. Gavin Newsom to serve as an Associate Justice of the Fourth District Court of Appeal, Division Three. Appointed to the Orange County Superior Court judge by Gov. Jerry Brown, Oct. 29, 2018; partner, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, 2017-18; partner, BakerHostetler, 2005-17; shareholder, Alvarado Smith & Sanchez, APC, 1993-2005; managing counsel, Mazda Motor of America Inc., 1991-93; senior counsel, Hyundai Motor America, 1986-91; associate, Rutan & Tucker LLP, 1981-86.
UC Berkeley School of Law, 1981
Judicial Profiles
| Title | Court | Published |
|---|---|---|
| Doing the right thing | Orange County (Orange) | Oct. 25, 2019 |
Columns
| Title | Category | Published |
|---|---|---|
| The pitfalls of being an in-house lawyer | Corporate | Sep. 25, 2019 |
Rulings
| Case | Category | Published |
|---|---|---|
|
People v. Temple
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | May 7, 2025 |
|
Nazaryan v. Femtometrix
author
|
Contracts | Apr. 24, 2025 |
|
Golden State Boring v. Astaldi Construction
author
|
Contracts | Apr. 17, 2025 |
|
Modification: Montoya v. Superior Court (Fowler)
author
|
Torts | Mar. 28, 2025 |
|
Montoya v. Superior Court (Fowler)
author
|
Torts | Mar. 24, 2025 |
|
People v. Woods
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Mar. 20, 2025 |
|
Santa Ana Police Officers Assn. et al. v. City of Santa Ana
author
|
Municipal Law | Mar. 3, 2025 |
|
Modification: People v. Townes
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Feb. 5, 2025 |
|
People v. Townes
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Feb. 4, 2025 |
|
Sheehy v. Chicago Title Insurance Co.
author
|
Civil Procedure | Jan. 22, 2025 |
|
Modification: Mercado v. Superior Court (Wolf)
author
|
Family Law | Nov. 25, 2024 |
|
Mercado v. Superior Court (Wolf)
author
|
Family Law | Nov. 22, 2024 |
|
People v. Hall
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Sep. 9, 2024 |
|
People v. Lopez
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Aug. 28, 2024 |
|
Marriage of Lietz
author
|
Evidence | Feb. 8, 2024 |
|
M.A. v. B.F.
dissenting
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Feb. 6, 2024 |
|
Modification: People ex rel. Schlesinger v. Sachs
author
|
Government | Dec. 14, 2023 |
|
People ex rel. Schlesinger v. Sachs
author
|
Government | Dec. 5, 2023 |
|
Lurner v. American Golf Corp.
author
|
Disability Discrimination | Nov. 15, 2023 |
|
Mary's Kitchen v. City of Orange
author
|
Anti-SLAPP | Oct. 25, 2023 |
|
People v. Saavedra
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Oct. 17, 2023 |
|
Glynn v. Orange Circle Lounge Inc.
author
|
Torts | Oct. 2, 2023 |
|
Martin v. THI E-Commerce, LLC
author
|
Disability Discrimination | Sep. 14, 2023 |
|
Last v. Superior Court (Last)
author
|
Family Law | Aug. 3, 2023 |
|
HNHPC v. Dept. of Cannabis Control
author
|
Administrative Agencies | Aug. 2, 2023 |
|
Marriage of Willis v. Costa-Willis
author
|
Family Law | Jul. 17, 2023 |
|
Olen Properties Corp. v. City of Newport Beach
author
|
Environmental Law | Jul. 10, 2023 |
|
Deck v. Developers Investment Co., Inc.
author
|
Civil Procedure | Mar. 27, 2023 |
|
Piplack v. In-N-Out Burgers
author
|
Arbitration | Mar. 8, 2023 |
|
Starr v. Ashbrook
author
|
Anti-SLAPP | Jan. 27, 2023 |
|
Modification: Shapell Socal Rental Properties v. Chico's FAS
author
|
Civil Procedure | Nov. 16, 2022 |
|
Doe v. Software One
author
|
Evidence | Nov. 9, 2022 |
|
Shapell Socal Rental Properties v. Chico's FAS
author
|
Civil Procedure | Oct. 18, 2022 |
|
California Business & Industrial Alliance v. Becerra
author
|
Constitutional Law | Jul. 1, 2022 |
|
In re Z.O.
author
|
Juveniles | May 26, 2022 |
|
Modification: People v. Lopez
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | May 23, 2022 |
|
People v. Lopez
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | May 2, 2022 |
|
McCord v. Smith
affirmed
|
Family Law | Jul. 1, 2020 |
Verdicts & Settlements
| Case Name | Topic | Role | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| Powerhouse Motorsports Group Inc., et al. v. Yamaha Motor Corp. USA | Contracts | Defendant | Sep. 10, 2011 |
| Title | Court | Published |
|---|---|---|
| Doing the right thing | Orange County (Orange) | Oct. 25, 2019 |
| Title | Category | Published |
|---|---|---|
| The pitfalls of being an in-house lawyer | Corporate | Sep. 25, 2019 |
| Case | Category | Published |
|---|---|---|
|
People v. Temple
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | May 7, 2025 |
|
Nazaryan v. Femtometrix
author
|
Contracts | Apr. 24, 2025 |
|
Golden State Boring v. Astaldi Construction
author
|
Contracts | Apr. 17, 2025 |
|
Modification: Montoya v. Superior Court (Fowler)
author
|
Torts | Mar. 28, 2025 |
|
Montoya v. Superior Court (Fowler)
author
|
Torts | Mar. 24, 2025 |
|
People v. Woods
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Mar. 20, 2025 |
|
Santa Ana Police Officers Assn. et al. v. City of Santa Ana
author
|
Municipal Law | Mar. 3, 2025 |
|
Modification: People v. Townes
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Feb. 5, 2025 |
|
People v. Townes
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Feb. 4, 2025 |
|
Sheehy v. Chicago Title Insurance Co.
author
|
Civil Procedure | Jan. 22, 2025 |
|
Modification: Mercado v. Superior Court (Wolf)
author
|
Family Law | Nov. 25, 2024 |
|
Mercado v. Superior Court (Wolf)
author
|
Family Law | Nov. 22, 2024 |
|
People v. Hall
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Sep. 9, 2024 |
|
People v. Lopez
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Aug. 28, 2024 |
|
Marriage of Lietz
author
|
Evidence | Feb. 8, 2024 |
|
M.A. v. B.F.
dissenting
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Feb. 6, 2024 |
|
Modification: People ex rel. Schlesinger v. Sachs
author
|
Government | Dec. 14, 2023 |
|
People ex rel. Schlesinger v. Sachs
author
|
Government | Dec. 5, 2023 |
|
Lurner v. American Golf Corp.
author
|
Disability Discrimination | Nov. 15, 2023 |
|
Mary's Kitchen v. City of Orange
author
|
Anti-SLAPP | Oct. 25, 2023 |
|
People v. Saavedra
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | Oct. 17, 2023 |
|
Glynn v. Orange Circle Lounge Inc.
author
|
Torts | Oct. 2, 2023 |
|
Martin v. THI E-Commerce, LLC
author
|
Disability Discrimination | Sep. 14, 2023 |
|
Last v. Superior Court (Last)
author
|
Family Law | Aug. 3, 2023 |
|
HNHPC v. Dept. of Cannabis Control
author
|
Administrative Agencies | Aug. 2, 2023 |
|
Marriage of Willis v. Costa-Willis
author
|
Family Law | Jul. 17, 2023 |
|
Olen Properties Corp. v. City of Newport Beach
author
|
Environmental Law | Jul. 10, 2023 |
|
Deck v. Developers Investment Co., Inc.
author
|
Civil Procedure | Mar. 27, 2023 |
|
Piplack v. In-N-Out Burgers
author
|
Arbitration | Mar. 8, 2023 |
|
Starr v. Ashbrook
author
|
Anti-SLAPP | Jan. 27, 2023 |
|
Modification: Shapell Socal Rental Properties v. Chico's FAS
author
|
Civil Procedure | Nov. 16, 2022 |
|
Doe v. Software One
author
|
Evidence | Nov. 9, 2022 |
|
Shapell Socal Rental Properties v. Chico's FAS
author
|
Civil Procedure | Oct. 18, 2022 |
|
California Business & Industrial Alliance v. Becerra
author
|
Constitutional Law | Jul. 1, 2022 |
|
In re Z.O.
author
|
Juveniles | May 26, 2022 |
|
Modification: People v. Lopez
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | May 23, 2022 |
|
People v. Lopez
author
|
Criminal Law and Procedure | May 2, 2022 |
|
McCord v. Smith
affirmed
|
Family Law | Jul. 1, 2020 |
| Case Name | Topic | Role | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| Powerhouse Motorsports Group Inc., et al. v. Yamaha Motor Corp. USA | Contracts | Defendant | Sep. 10, 2011 |