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Melissa N. Widdifield
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2007 - Present
2029
18
Melissa N. Widdifield is a judge of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County in California. She assumed office in 2007. Her current term ends on January 8, 2029.
Widdifield won re-election for judge of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County in California outright in the primary on June 7, 2022, after the primary and general election were canceled.
Widdifield was appointed by Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on August 20, 2007, to succeed Bernard Kamins.[1][2]
Education
Widdifield received a bachelor's degree from University of California, Los Angeles and a J.D. from Loyola Law School.[2]
Career
- 2007-Present: Judge, Superior Court of Los Angeles County
- 2002-2007: Commissioner, Superior Court of Los Angeles County
- 1987-2002: Lawyer, Lightfoot, Vandevelde, Sadowsky, Medvene & Levine[2]
Elections
2022
See also: Municipal elections in Los Angeles County, California (2022)
Nonpartisan primary election
The primary election was canceled. Melissa N. Widdifield (Nonpartisan) won the election without appearing on the ballot.
2016
California held general elections for local judicial offices on November 8, 2016. There was a primary on June 7, 2016. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was March 31, 2016. A total of 351 seats were up for election. Incumbent Melissa N. Widdifield ran unopposed in the election for Office 79 of the Los Angeles County Superior Court.[3]
| Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge, Office #79, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | ||
 Melissa N. Widdifield Incumbent | ||
Selection method
- See also: Nonpartisan election
The 1,535 judges of the California Superior Courts compete in nonpartisan races in even-numbered years. If a candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote in the June primary election, he or she is declared the winner; if no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote, a runoff between the top two candidates is held during the November general election.[4][5][6][7]
If an incumbent judge is running unopposed in an election, his or her name does not appear on the ballot. The judge is automatically re-elected following the general election.[4]
The chief judge of any given superior court is selected by peer vote of the court's members. He or she serves in that capacity for one or two years, depending on the county.[4]
Qualifications
Candidates are required to have 10 years of experience as a law practitioner or as a judge of a court of record.[4]
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Melissa N. Widdifield did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
Public admonishment
On January 19, 2010, Judge Widdifield was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol. On May 14, 2010, she entered a plea of no contest to reckless driving.
Due to the unlawful action and disregard of the principles of personal and official conduct embodied in the California Code of Judicial Ethics and failure to respect and comply with the law, the Commission voted to impose a public admonishment on Judge Widdifield.[8]
- For a more detailed description of the case please see: "Public admonishment of Judge Melissa N. Widdifield," December 14, 2010.
See also
2022 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ California Courts, "Trial Courts Roster," accessed April 9, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Metropolitan News-Enterprise, "Schwarzenegger Names Nine to Los Angeles Superior Court," August 21, 2007
- ↑ Los Angeles County, CA, "Candidate Filing Report," accessed April 5, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: California," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Safeguarding California's judicial election process," August 21, 2011
- ↑ California Elections Code, "Section 8203," accessed May 21, 2014
- ↑ California Elections Code, "Section 8140-8150," accessed May 21, 2014
- ↑ "Public admonishment of Judge Melissa N. Widdifield" The Commission on Judicial Performance, December 14, 2010
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Federal courts:
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Central District of California, Eastern District of California, Northern District of California, Southern District of California • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Central District of California, Eastern District of California, Northern District of California, Southern District of California
State courts:
California Supreme Court • California Courts of Appeal • California Superior Courts
State resources:
Courts in California • California judicial elections • Judicial selection in California
