Passing the Baton

About three years ago, a group of women judges around the state began working in earnest to get us to where California Women Judges (CWJ) is today. Judge Samantha Jessner of the Los Angeles Superior Court started the conversation with a question: what can we - as leaders in the judicial branch - do to create a uniquely safe space for women judges to dialogue about issues in the judiciary and in the community concerning empowerment, inclusion, mentorship, support, education, and scholarship? CWJ and the judicial officers in the state of California, owe Judge Jessner a debt of gratitude. Her vision, ability to bring people together, and example of hard work and dedication to inclusion have been instrumental in bringing us to where we are today. Judge Jessner's commitment of time and treasure made CWJ possible.

What started as a seed quickly germinated. An exploratory committee of nineteen judges from around the state was formed. Geographic, experiential, and personal diversity were key. After all, how could we create an organization supporting empowerment, equity, and inclusion without the voices and insight of as many diverse points of view as possible?

Intentionally and purposefully including different and sometimes divergent viewpoints presented many challenges as we embarked on our journey. True inclusivity requires time, patience, empathy, and open-mindedness. It required the recognition that shared goals do not necessarily equate with agreement in direction or methods. Our conversations were complicated and nuanced while remaining civil and respectful. I can say with complete confidence that the rich and substantive debates we had over months of conversation resulted in the formation of a solid foundation from which we eventually created CWJ.

CWJ's mission statement says it all: "California Women Judges supports and empowers women judicial officers throughout the state. We advocate for meaningful equity and inclusion of all women within the judicial branch, regardless of race, ethnicity, national origin, disability, gender (which for CWJ includes all gender identities and expressions), or sexual orientation, through education, leadership, mentoring, and outreach."

We launched CWJ at the California Judges Association (CJA) Annual Meeting in 2023. We held a small gathering at the end of one of the days of programming and invited everyone. Not only was the event a standing room only affair, but those in attendance represented the wide diversity of judicial officers we were hoping to attract.

Eighty-five (85) women and men joined CWJ as life members in our first year. Many more judges joined as regular members and the numbers are rising. As a fledgling organization, CWJ offered several programs and formed relationships with other judges' associations. To further solidify solidarity with our allies in the judiciary, we incorporated liaison seats on our board for representatives of the Association of African American California Judicial Officers, California Asian Pacific American Judges Association, California Latino Judges Association, and LGBT Judicial Officers of California and wrote flexibility into the CWJ bylaws to include more in the future. And CWJ itself is a member of the California Affinity Judges Association Coalition.

As we move into our second board year, I am excited to participate in CWJ's continued growth. Many current board members will be transitioning to new roles in CWJ, and several members will be cycling off the board, including:

• President-Elect, Judge Serena Murillo
• District One Representative, Judge Linda H. Colfax
• District Six Representative, Judge Nahal Iravani-Sani
• Appellate Justice Representative, Justice Teri L. Jackson
• Commissioner Representative, Commissioner Johanna Thai Van Dat
• Association of African American California Judicial Officers Representative, Justice Monique Langhorne Wilson
• California Asian Pacific American Judges Association Representative, Judge Terry Truong
• Member at Large, Judge A. Veronica Sauceda

I am sincerely grateful to our inaugural board for its leadership. CWJ held its first Annual Meeting this past June. Those in attendance witnessed former Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye swear in the 2025-26 CWJ Board of Directors and watched an engaging fireside chat featuring Chief Justice Cantil-Sakauye and Presiding Justice Lee Edmon.

Under the leadership of CWJ's new President, Judge Audra Ibarra, and the new CWJ Board of Directors, CWJ will present many events in the coming year of interest to the membership. I am very proud to have led the organization over the past year and am looking forward to being part of the growth to come.

At the Annual Meeting, I ended my last President's Report with a few words about courage and leadership.

The driving force behind the formation of CWJ was the need to create a safe space in addition to the few that already existed among the other affinity judges' associations with a focus on gender and the intersection between gender and other identities represented in the judiciary. We started this endeavor in an atmosphere free of fear from retribution for leaning into difficult conversations about diversity, equity, and inclusion. Fast forward to 2025. We now live in a time where those conversations are stifled and even being silenced. As we move forward as a society, those conversations continue to hold relevance and importance.

Dr. Brené Brown - a research professor at the University of Houston who describes herself as "a researcher, storyteller, and Texan who's spent the past two decades studying courage, vulnerability, shame, and empathy" -- said it best: "Daring leaders who live into their values are never silent about hard things. And courage is contagious."

I look forward to continuing the conversation and am grateful to CWJ for creating the space to keep it going.