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Gordon B. Burns
Associate Justice, Division 5
Full 12-year termNot a former trial judge
Former deputy attorney general, first Deputy Solicitor General for civil law, and CalEPA undersecretary; never a trial judge. Halted People's Park student housing; later reversed.
On your ballot. Vote Yes or No on keeping Gordon B. Burns on the court (full 12-year term). Appears on ballots in Alameda, Contra Costa, Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Solano and Sonoma.
Qualifications
Appointment. Appointed by Gov. Brown, 2018. Retained 2022.
Outside rating. None found. The State Bar rates nominees before appointment, but we could not find this rating in public sources.
Before the bench. Deputy attorney general from 1997 (tort and land law, including the Bay-Delta), California's first Deputy Solicitor General for civil law, then CalEPA undersecretary. Never served as a trial judge.
Conduct
No public discipline or controversies found.
What others recommend
- YesGrowSF (moderate civic group)
- YesSan Francisco Chronicle (newspaper editorial board)
- YesSF League of Pissed Off Voters (progressive group)
- YesIndivisible Marin (Yes on all California justices) (progressive group)
- YesPotrero Hill Democratic Club (Democratic club)
- NoCraig Huey voter guide (conservative guide)
- NoReform California (conservative guide)
Robyn Nordell's conservative guide repeats Craig Huey's picks, so it is not listed separately.
Trellis does not make recommendations. These are positions published by outside groups as of October 16, 2026. Labels describe each group's general leaning.
Notable rulings
- EnvironmentMake UC a Good Neighbor v. Regents (2023). Halted UC Berkeley's People's Park student housing over an inadequate environmental review. The Legislature changed the law and the Supreme Court reversed in 2024. Read the opinion ›
From the trial court record
Never served as a trial judge, so there is no trial court record to show.
Sources: Court bio
Others on the same ballot
- Monique Langhorne WilsonNapa's first Black deputy DA; Napa commissioner and judge for 17 years. Ruled the Skunk Train is a public utility that can use eminent domain.
- Charles A. Smiley IIIFormer Alameda public defender; Alameda commissioner and judge from 2007, including presiding judge and juvenile and treatment courts. Appointed 2025; no widely reported appellate rulings yet.
- Kathleen M. BankeAppellate lawyer for over 20 years; Alameda trial judge 2006 to 2009. Ordered Vallejo to release more of its investigation into officers' badge-bending after shootings.
- Therese M. StewartFormer San Francisco Chief Deputy City Attorney who argued the city's marriage equality cases; never a trial judge. Revived a 1987 death-row inmate's hidden-evidence claim.
- Tara M. DesautelsFormer Alameda deputy DA and white-collar litigator; Alameda trial judge for 14 years, including presiding judge during COVID. Appointed 2024; no widely reported appellate rulings yet.
- Ioana PetrouFormer federal prosecutor and health-care fraud coordinator; Alameda trial judge 2010 to 2018. For a 2-1 panel, threw out a $2.16 million verdict for a fired PG&E lineman.
- Victor A. RodriguezFormer MALDEF fellow and longtime California Supreme Court staff attorney; ran Alameda's first domestic violence restraining order courtroom. Upheld insurers' use of marital status in rates.
- Tracie L. BrownFormer federal prosecutor; San Francisco trial judge 2013 to 2018. Largely upheld Prop 22, keeping app-based drivers as independent contractors; the Supreme Court affirmed.
- Danny Y. ChouFormer San Francisco appellate chief and Santa Clara lead-paint litigator; San Mateo trial judge 2018 to 2023. Ruled public school employees may strike over unfair labor practices.
- Mark B. SimonsFormer public defender; trial judge from 1980 and the longest-serving First District justice. Ruled Sonoma's civilian sheriff-oversight office can subpoena deputies.