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Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed eight new judges to superior courts in the greater Bay Area, his office announced last week.
A new judge will take the bench in Contra Costa County, Marin County, Napa County, San Francisco County, Santa Clara County and San Mateo County, in addition to two new judges in San Joaquin County. The appointments were part of a larger push to fill superior court vacancies, with Newsom elevating 15 judges across the state, according to a press release from the governor’s office on June 18.
Superior courts hold trials for both criminal and civil cases at a county level. The appointees will earn a salary of $238,479 in their new roles, according to the release.
Michael Nieto will fill a vacancy in Contra Costa County Superior Court after working in the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office since 1997. Newsom tapped James Schurz out of private law practice to serve in Marin County Superior Court. Schurz was a partner at San Francisco-based law firm Morrison Foerster since 1998.
Robert Stamps will take up a new position as judge in the Napa County Superior Court after serving as a commissioner there since 2021. Adrienne Leight Rogers will serve as a judge for San Francisco Superior Court after working as the managing attorney for the California First District Court of Appeal.
Katy Jacot was elected to the San Joaquin County Superior Court for a term starting in 2025. Newsom appointed her to the court on an interim basis until then so she could immediately assume the position. Gurjit Singh Srai will also join San Joaquin County Superior Court after practicing law independently since 2010.
Like Jacot, Sarah Burdick will join San Mateo County Superior Court on an interim basis before beginning her elected term in 2025. Cynthia Chen joins Santa Clara County Superior Court from the Dependency Advocacy Center.
All of the Bay Area appointees, with the exception of Chen, are registered as Democrats, according to the press release.