U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California is a United States district court, a federal trial court where most federal civil and criminal cases are first heard. It lies within the Ninth Circuit, which reviews its decisions on appeal. This page lists every judge to serve on the court, current and former, with who appointed them and whom they succeeded.
| Judge | Appointed by | Since |
|---|---|---|
| Marilyn L. Huff | Bush (R) | 1991 |
| Barry Ted Moskowitz | Clinton (D) | 1995 |
| Jeffrey T. Miller | Clinton (D) | 1997 |
| Thomas J. Whelan | Clinton (D) | 1998 |
| M. James Lorenz | Clinton (D) | 1999 |
| William Q. Hayes | Bush (R) | 2003 |
| John A. Houston | Bush (R) | 2003 |
| Dana Makoto Sabraw | Bush (R) | 2003 |
| Janis Lynn Sammartino | Bush (R) | 2007 |
| Michael M. Anello | Bush (R) | 2008 |
| Anthony Joseph Battaglia | Obama (D) | 2011 |
| Cathy Ann Bencivengo | Obama (D) | 2012 |
| Gonzalo Paul Curiel | Obama (D) | 2012 |
| Cynthia Ann Bashant | Obama (D) | 2014 |
| Todd Wallace Robinson | Trump (R) | 2020 |
| Linda Lopez | Biden (D) | 2021 |
| Jinsook Ohta | Biden (D) | 2021 |
| Robert Steven Huie | Biden (D) | 2022 |
| Ruth Bermudez Montenegro | Biden (D) | 2022 |
| Andrew George Schopler | Biden (D) | 2023 |
| James Edward Simmons Jr. | Biden (D) | 2023 |
| Benjamin Jerome Cheeks | Biden (D) | 2025 |
How a judge gets here. Each judge is nominated by a president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, then holds a numbered seat, for life, until they take senior status, or until they leave the bench. Open any judge to see who appointed them, how the Senate voted, and whom they succeeded, a chain that runs back to 1850.
Source: FJC Biographical Directory. Data last verified 2026-06-28. Verify against the primary source before relying.