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Scott A. Steiner
Scott A. Steiner is a judge of the Superior Court of Orange County in California. He assumed office in 2011. His current term ends on January 8, 2029.
Steiner won re-election for judge of the Superior Court of Orange County in California outright in the primary on June 7, 2022, after the primary and general election were canceled.
Biography
Education
Steiner received his undergraduate degree from the University of California at Irvine in 1996 and his J.D. degree from the University of California Hastings College of the Law in 1999.[1]
Career
After graduating from law school, Steiner served as a deputy district attorney for the Orange County District Attorney's Office until he assumed the bench in January 2011.[1]
Elections
2022
See also: Municipal elections in Orange County, California (2022)
Nonpartisan primary election
The primary election was canceled. Scott A. Steiner (Nonpartisan) won the election without appearing on the ballot.
2020
See also: Municipal elections in Orange County, California (2020)
Nonpartisan primary election
The primary election was canceled. Scott A. Steiner (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 Scott A. Steiner defeated Karen Lee Schatzle in the election for Office 48 of the Orange County Superior Court.[2]
| Orange County Superior Court Judge, Office #48, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Scott A. Steiner Incumbent |
56.34% | 205,742 |
| Karen Lee Schatzle | 43.66% | 159,466 |
| Total Votes | 365,208 | |
| Source: Orange County Registrar of Voters, "Unofficial election results," accessed June 8, 2016 | ||
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.[3][4][5][6]
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.[3]
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.[3]
Qualifications
Candidates are required to have 10 years of experience as a law practitioner or as a judge of a court of record.[3]
2010
Steiner was elected to the Superior Court of Orange County on June 8, 2010. He won the election unopposed.[1]
- Main article: California Superior Court judicial elections, 2010 (A-R)
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Scott A. Steiner did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Scott A. Steiner did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
Noteworthy events
Steiner censured by the California Commission on Judicial Performance
On September 2, 2014, the California Commission on Judicial Performance censured Steiner for having sex with two women on more than one occasion in his judicial chambers. One woman was his intern, the other was a local attorney, and both women were former students of Steiner, who taught as an adjunct professor at the Chapman University School of Law.[7][8] The complete order imposing the censure can be read here.
In addition to his sexual misconduct, the commission found that Steiner had acted outside the scope of his office permitted by the California Code of Judicial Ethics, when he wrote a recommendation for this intern and then proceeded to contact the potential employer to express his irritation when she had not been hired. As for his conduct with the local attorney, Steiner disqualified himself from the cases in which she was set to appear before him, but then assigned her cases to specific judges on the court.[8]
The commission further found that Steiner had failed to disqualify himself from cases in which the attorney before him was a very close friend—an act also impermissible by the California Code of Judicial Ethics.[8]
The censure serves as a public reprimand and is the severest form of punishment meted out by the commission, outside the removal of a judge from the bench altogether. Since Steiner expressly admitted to the findings of the commission and agreed to the conditions of the public censure, he was be permitted to remain on the bench with full pay and benefits.[7]
See also
2022 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Daily Mail, "Judge and married father of two 'gave woman a job in district attorney's office in exchange for sex'," March 7, 2013
- ↑ Orange County, CA, "Candidate Filing Log," accessed April 8, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 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
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 The Orange County Register, "Orange County Superior Court judge censured for in-office sex," September 2, 2014
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 State of California Commission on Judicial Performance, "In the matter concerning Judge Cory Woodward: Decision and order imposing censure," September 2, 2014
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
