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Stephen I. Goorvitch↗
Associate Justice, Division 2
First retention voteTrellis trial record
Former federal prosecutor, SEC attorney and teacher; LA trial judge 2015 to 2026, where he ruled LAUSD violated Prop 39 by barring charter schools from campuses.
On your ballot. Vote Yes or No on keeping Stephen I. Goorvitch on the court (first retention vote). Appears on ballots in Los Angeles, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura.
Qualifications
Appointment. Appointed by Gov. Newsom, 2026.
Outside rating. None found. The State Bar rates nominees before appointment, but we could not find this rating in public sources.
Before the bench. SEC enforcement attorney, O'Melveny & Myers, and federal prosecutor 2007 to 2015; former high school teacher. LA Superior Court judge 2015 to 2026.
Conduct
No public discipline or controversies found.
What others recommend
- YesIndivisible Marin (Yes on all California justices) (progressive group)
- NoCraig Huey voter guide (conservative guide)
- NoLos Angeles County Republican Party (Republican Party)
In this district, we found published positions mainly from conservative and Republican groups. Most Democratic, progressive and newspaper groups here had not published positions on these justices as of October 16.
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
- Government & public agenciesCharter schools v. LAUSD (trial ruling) (2025). Ruled LAUSD broke Prop 39 by blanket-barring charter schools from sharing about 346 campuses. Read coverage ›
- Housing & propertyYIMBY v. City of LA (trial ruling) (2025). Ordered the City Council to undo its denial of a housing project.
From the trial court record
Mostly heard injury and civil-harm cases. Granted motions at about the same rate as other judges in the county, and cases took longer than the county average, which usually reflects the kind of cases assigned.
Their trial court record, compared with other judges in the county
Bars compare this judge with county and state averages. Differences usually reflect the kinds of cases a judge was assigned.
Motions granted
Average case length
Time to trial
Caseload mix
Torts 86.8%, Commercial 4.6%, Labor & Employment 2.5%
Granted motions by filing side
24.6% filed by plaintiffs, 75.4% by defendants
| Motion type | Granted | Rulings | County avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Continue trial | 84.2% | 738 | 72.5% |
| Summary judgment | 43.1% | 547 | 43.1% |
| Motion to dismiss | 89.5% | 429 | 72.9% |
| Compel arbitration | 88.0% | 50 | 72.7% |
LA County Superior Court · 13,725 docketsUpdated 2026-10-02 · Full profile →
Sample rulings from the trial bench
- Government & public agenciesResident v. City of Arcadia (2019-10-02)Motion granted A woman bitten by an Arcadia police dog in her own backyard sued the city. The judge threw out her negligent-supervision claim because cities can only be sued under specific statutes, but let her refile under the law covering employee negligence. Read the ruling on Trellis ›
- Injury & safetyStudent v. Watts Learning Center (2019-05-22)Motion denied A student hurt playing touch football at recess sued his school. The judge refused to end the case: schools must supervise recess, and the school allegedly failed to enforce its own football ban. Read the ruling on Trellis ›
- Injury & safetyCustomer v. Beverly Hot Springs (2019-06-05)Motion denied A customer said she caught a MRSA infection at a spa. The judge let the case go forward: the spa had no proof its hygiene rules were followed that day, and a signed waiver cannot excuse gross negligence. Read the ruling on Trellis ›
Others on the same ballot
- Michelle C. KimAbout 15 years as an LA County public defender; LA civil trial judge 2018 to 2024. Upheld the law letting childhood sexual abuse survivors sue school districts.
- Gregory J. WeingartFormer federal prosecutor and Major Frauds chief, then Munger Tolles partner; LA family law judge 2017 to 2022. Cut $1.3 billion from a family real estate judgment.
- Anne K. RichardsonAbout 20 years as a civil rights lawyer, then Public Counsel directing attorney; LA trial judge 2018 to 2024. Ruled defamation litigants cannot use fake names by agreement.
- Rashida A. AdamsFormer employment and whistleblower lawyer and Court of Appeal research attorney; LA juvenile dependency judge 2017 to 2023. Dissented on lemon-law buybacks conditioned on confidentiality.
- Mark K. HanasonoFormer LA County public defender who handled capital cases; LA trial judge 2013 to 2025, mostly criminal. Appointed 2025; no widely reported appellate rulings yet.
- Helen ZukinAbout 30 years as a plaintiffs' lawyer in toxic tort and drug cases; LA trial judge 2018 to 2023. Struck USC's employee arbitration agreement as one-sided.
- Nicholas F. DaumFormer litigator in media, entertainment and appeals; LA trial judge 2022 to 2026, where he ordered Kanye West to pay a former employee's legal fees.
- Audra M. MoriFormer intellectual property litigator and Perkins Coie LA managing partner; LA trial judge 2018 to 2023. Ruled the County Assessor illegally raised taxes on rebuilt homes.
- Armen TamzarianFormer business litigator; LA trial judge 2013 to 2025 with about 100 trials. Upheld a gag order on Microsoft about an LAPD email warrant.
- Brian M. HoffstadtFormer federal prosecutor and U.S. Supreme Court clerk; author of a criminal discovery treatise. In 2024 publicly criticized a Supreme Court decision reversing one of his opinions.
- Tari L. CodyFormer civil litigator for public agencies; Ventura trial judge 2000 to 2023. First California ruling treating surfing collisions as an inherent risk; upheld large-capacity magazine bans.
- Kenneth R. YeganFormer public defender; on the Court of Appeal for 36 years. His 2025 opinion upholding a conviction despite a prosecutor's racially charged language drew criticism.
- Gonzalo C. MartinezFormer appellate partner and deputy solicitor general; never a trial judge. Upheld LA's rule barring evictions of tenants owing less than one month's rent.
- Natalie P. StoneFormer Munger Tolles lawyer and food bank fundraiser co-founder; LA juvenile and criminal judge 2015 to 2024. Largely upheld Pasadena's voter-approved rent control.
- John Shepard Wiley Jr.Former UCLA law professor for 22 years and federal prosecutor; LA trial judge 2002 to 2018. Argued in a concurrence that Amazon should be liable for third-party products.
- Matthew A. ScherbFormer Winston & Strawn litigator, LA deputy city attorney and appellate staff attorney; never a trial judge. Appointed 2025; no widely reported rulings yet.
- Victor G. ViramontesFormer teacher and MALDEF senior counsel who won Dreamers' driver's licenses in Arizona; LA Children's Court judge 2017 to 2022. Upheld a $1 million bullying verdict.