Joan Dempsey Klein Distinguished Jurist Award

CWL presented its first Distinguished Jurist Award to Justice Joan Dempsey Klein, for whom the award was later named, in 1994, and it has been given in her honor ever since. Justice Klein is a champion of women's rights and a pioneer in the struggle to achieve equal opportunity for women in the law. She was a founder and provisional president of CWL and the first president of the National Association of Women Judges, and she has spent considerable time giving support and positive reinforcement to women in the legal profession.

Justice Klein served as a California deputy attorney general for seven years prior to her appointment to the Los Angeles Municipal Court, where she served as Presiding Judge. She was then elected to the Los Angeles Superior Court by a wide margin in a county-wide election. Justice Klein now serves as the Presiding Justice of the Second District Court of Appeal, Division Three, in Los Angeles, and is the first woman to hold that position. She is well known as an excellent judge who listens, encourages dialogue and fosters consensus. She accomplished all of this while raising five children.

Criteria for the Award

Candidates for the Joan Dempsey Klein Distinguished Jurist Award are evaluated for excellence as jurists and for longstanding vigorous service and inspiration to the women lawyers of California.

How to Submit a Nomination

The Joan Dempsey Klein Distinguished Jurist Award is presented annually at CWL's Southern California Judicial Reception. Please submit nominations in writing, describing the nominee and the ways in which she meets the above criteria, along with a resume and any letters of recommendation, to CWL, 650 Howe Avenue, Suite 555, Sacramento, CA 95825, phone 916/646-3114, email:info@cwl.org. Please contact the CWL office or any board member with any questions or comments.

Past Recipients

2007 Judge Consuelo Marshall - Judge Marshall served as the first woman (and, thus the first African American woman) to serve as Chief Judge of the Central District of California. After serving as the first woman lawyer to serve as a Deputy City Attorney for Los Angeles, she became a Commissioner for the Los Angeles Superior Court, an Inglewood Municipal Court Judge and, was elevated to the Superior Court. Throughout her career, Judge Marshall has demonstrated a commitment to access to justice, extraordinary legal talents, as well as her accessibility and continued devotion to community service, and has been a mentor and inspiration to innumerable members of the community.

2006 Judge Wendy Lindley - Orange County Superior Court Judge Wendy Lindley, an innovative and energetic jurist who established outstanding programs to assist the homeless and/or persons with substance abuse and mental health problems, has had a significant impact on the courts and the community. In order to break the cycle of drug or alcohol abuse, broken homes and incarceration which could not be adequately treated by correctional facilities, she started the Orange County Drug Court over which she presided for twelve years. In 2002, she founded the Co-Occurring Disorders Court, a post adjudication alternative for felony drug offenders diagnosed as chronically and persistently mentally ill. She also presides over the Community Court, composed of the above courts plusthe Homeless Outreach Court, which addresses mental health related criminal cases and low level cases involving those with chronic drug, alcohol and mental illness issues.

2005 Judge Sandra Thompson - Judge Sandra Thompson of the Los Angeles Superior Court has a statewide reputation as a distinguished jurist known for her integrity and leadership on the bench and for her connection with her community. She has worked tirelessly to enhance the status of women lawyers and judges and has mentored many women lawyers. At the time she received the Joan Dempsey Klein Award, Judge Thompson was President of the National Association of Women Judges, an organization committed to increasing the number of women on the bench. Judge Thompson has also served on the California Judicial Council and the Board of the National Center for State Courts.

2004 Justice Judith Haller - Associate Justice Judith Haller of the California Court of Appeal for the Fourth District, Division One (San Diego),was recognized for her excellence as a jurist, her inspiration as a role model to women in the legal profession, and her work toward a professional model that permits women to succeed in the law while still fulfilling their commitments to their families.

2003 Judge Pamela L. Iles - Judge Pamela L. Iles of the Orange County Superior Court was recognized in 2003 for her tireless efforts to prevent child abuse and domestic violence by developing innovative programs to help victims and treat offenders. She developed a model case management system to meet the needs of the whole family involved in each case, and leads annual free programs educating teachers, teenagers, clergy and others on methods of preventing, detecting and addressing domestic violence.

2002 Judge Fumiko Wasserman - Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Fumiko Hachiya Wasserman, like Justice Klein, has demonstrated excellence as a jurist and as an outstanding leader, particularly in her commitment to eliminating gender bias in the judicial system, and has continually served as a role model to her colleagues. Her consistent mentoring of female law students and new lawyers is particularly inspiring.

2001 Justice Vaino Spencer - Presiding Justice Vaino Spencer of the Second District Court of Appeal, Division One, was California's first African-American woman judge and one of the few women on the bench when she was appointed to the Los Angeles Municipal Court in 1961. An excellent jurist, she is also an inspiring groundbreaker who fought for gender equity in the legal profession and to increase the numbers of women appointed to the bench.

2000 Judge Veronica Simmons McBeth - Judge Veronica Simmons McBeth of the Los Angeles County Superior Court was recognized for her accomplishment in reorganizing the way courts reach out to inner city children through the First Impressions Program, which shows the judicial system in a positive light. Known for her innovative decisions, she received national attention in 1985 when she became the first judge to sentence a slumlord to live in his own building.

1999 Judge Meredith Taylor - Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Meredith Taylor, a CWL Past President and Life Member, was honored in 1999 for her leadership in promoting access to and fairness in the courts, and the elimination of gender bias in the profession. She served with distinction on the Judicial Council's Committee on Gender Bias in the Courts, the Gender Fairness Implementation Committee and the Committee on Access and Fairness in the Courts.

1998 Judge Judith Chirlin - Judge Judith Chirlin of the Los Angeles County Superior Court received the award in 1998 in recognition of her outstanding work as a trial jurist and her tireless efforts to improve the judicial system and diversify the bench. She served on several court committees, the Board of Governors of the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles, the International Association of Women Judges, and the National Association of Women Judges, whose Committee on Judicial Appointments she chaired for five years.

1997 Justice Candace D. Cooper - In presenting the award in 1997 to Candace Cooper, Supervising Judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court, Western District, Justice Klein noted Justice Cooper’s "renowned devotion to justice for humanity, especially her dedication to the elimination of bias and prejudice against women." Only the second African-American and second woman to serve as President of the California Judges Association, Justice Cooper proved a visionary leader and shared her knowledge in the Continuing Judicial Studies Program courses on elimination of bias, fairness and special problems in the justice system for women of color. She was elevated to the Second District Court of Appeal in 1999.

1996 Judge Arleigh Maddox Woods - Presiding Justice Arleigh Maddox Woods of the Second District Court of Appeal, Division Four, was honored in 1996 as a legal trailblazer. The youngest woman ever to be admitted to the California Bar in 1953 at the age of 22, she became the first female Supervising Judge in the Los Angeles Superior Court North Central District in 1979, the first African-American woman in the country to be appointed to a state court of appeal in 1980, and the first woman to chair the California Commission on Judicial Performance. In addition, from 1984 to 1987, she served as the Administrative Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal for the Second District.

1995 Presiding Justice Judith McConnell - Judge Judith McConnell, a founding member of CWL, was recognized in 1995 for her tenacity in championing the rights of women and minorities and in promoting equal justice for all. As the first female Presiding Judge of the San Diego Superior Court, she helped develop and implement the "Fast Track" and "Independent Calendar" programs. While serving on the Judicial Council, Judge McConnell organized training programs for judges on gender, racial and sexual preference bias and sexual harassment. In 2001, she was elevated to the Fourth District Court of Appeal, Division One, and in 2003 was appointed Presiding Justice of that court.

1994 Presiding Justice Joan Dempsey Klein - Presiding Justice Joan Dempsey Klein of the Second District Court of Appeal, Division Three, was the award's first recipient and the jurist for whom it was subsequently named. A founding member of CWL and of the National Association of Women Judges, she has battled courageously to overcome gender bias in a male-dominated profession while serving as a role model and mentor for women lawyers. She is considered a pioneer in the struggle to achieve equal opportunity for women in the law.