San Francisco-Chief Justice Ronald M. George today announced the appointment of eight members to the Judicial Council of California, the constitutionally mandated policymaking body of the California courts.

The appointees were named to three-year terms effective September 15, 2008. They are Justice Tani Gorre Cantil-Sakauye, Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District; Judge Lee Smalley Edmon, Superior Court of Los Angeles County; Judge Winifred Younge Smith, Superior Court of Alameda County; Commissioner Lon F. Hurwitz, Superior Court of Orange County; Mr. John Mendes, executive officer, Superior Court of Placer County; Mr. Joel S. Miliband, cochair of the Bench-Bar Coalition; and Mr. James N. Penrod, vice-president of the State Bar of California. Presiding Judge Dennis E. Murray, Superior Court of Tehama County, was reappointed.

In addition, the new chair of the Trial Court Presiding Judges Advisory Committee is Presiding Judge Kenneth K. So, Superior Court of San Diego County. He will serve a one-year term.

Chaired by the Chief Justice, the Judicial Council consists of 14 judicial members appointed by the Chief Justice, 4 attorney members appointed by the State Bar Board of Governors, 1 member from each house of the Legislature, and 6 advisory members. The Administrative Director of the Courts serves as secretary to the council.

Established by the state Constitution in 1926, the 2008-2009 Judicial Council, with 27 members, is responsible for ensuring the consistent, independent, impartial, and accessible administration of justice in the nation's largest court system.

A summary of the appointments follows.

Associate Justice Tani Gorre Cantil-Sakauye, of the Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District, was appointed to the appellate bench in 2005 following 15 years of service on the trial courts. In 1990, she was appointed to the Sacramento municipal court and in 1997 was elevated to the superior court. Before her appointment, she worked for the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office for 4 years. She served as a deputy district attorney (1985-1988) and as a deputy legislative secretary and deputy legal affairs secretary in the same office (1988-1989). Justice Cantil-Sakauye is currently a member of the Judicial Council's Domestic Violence Practice and Procedure Task Force and the Task Force for Criminal Justice Collaboration on Mental Health Issues. She also has been active in numerous professional community organizations, including the California Judges Association, the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, the Sacramento Asian Bar Association, and the Women Lawyers of Sacramento. Justice Cantil-Sakauye succeeds Justice Eileen C. Moore.

Judge Lee Smalley Edmon, of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, was elected to the bench in 2000 and currently serves as the supervising judge of the court's civil departments. Before her appointment to the bench, her immediate past employment was with Dewey Ballantine LLP, which she joined in 1987 and became a partner of in 1990. Judge Edmon has served on several Judicial Council committees, including the Governing Committee of the Center for Judicial Education and Research (CJER) and the Task Force on Judicial Service. She currently chairs the Civil and Small Claims Advisory Committee. In addition, she is president of the American Bar Endowment and a member of the California Judges Association, the Los Angeles County Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. Judge Edmon succeeds Judge Charles W. McCoy, Jr.

Judge Winifred Younge Smith, of the Superior Court of Alameda County, was appointed in 2000. Since joining the bench, she has completed the following assignments: Misdemeanor pretrials (2001), juvenile court (2002-2003), supervising judge of the Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse and Allen E. Broussard Justice Center (2004-2006), civil law and motion (2006-2007), and civil direct calendar (2007). Before her appointment, she served as a deputy attorney general for the state Department of Justice in San Francisco (1974-2000). Judge Smith was an active member of the Judicial Council's Access and Fairness Advisory Committee (2004-2007). She currently serves on the Continuing Judicial Studies Program Committee of the Center for Judicial Education and Research (CJER). Judge Smith succeeds Judge Barbara J. Miller.

Presiding Judge Dennis E. Murray, of the Superior Court of Tehama County, was appointed to the superior court in 1990 and has been presiding judge since 1997. He was previously a justice court judge in Red Bluff (1980-1990) and served in the Tehama County District Attorney's Office (1978-1980). Presiding Judge Murray has been active in a variety of Judicial Council activities, including the Trial Court Budget Working Group, the Executive Legislative Action Network, the Trial Court Presiding Judges Advisory Committee and its Executive Committee, and the Trial Court Coordination Advisory Committee. Presiding Judge Murray is also a member of the California Judges Association and the Cow County Judges Association. He was first appointed to the council in September 2005 and is reappointed for another three-year term.

Commissioner Lon F. Hurwitz, of the Superior Court of Orange County, assumed the family law domestic violence (DVPA) calendar in June 2008. In 2005, he was assigned to the Lamoreaux Family Law Justice Center Child Support Enforcement (AB 1058) calendar, where he served until 2008. He was appointed in 2004 and was first assigned to the West Justice Center to the limited civil calendar (limited civil trials, unlawful detainer, and civil harassment) and the misdemeanor arraignments calendar. Commissioner Hurwitz was in private practice from 1979 to 2004, specializing in complex construction defect litigation and mediation, and Cumis representation. He also was Special Counsel to the California State Senate Select Committee on Gasoline and Diesel Pricing (2004). He is a former member of the Judicial Council's Access and Fairness Advisory Committee. Commissioner Hurwitz succeeds Commissioner Ronald E. Albers.

Mr. John Mendes was appointed as executive officer of the Superior Court of Placer County in 1999. He joined the court in 1990 as an administrative services officer. He is currently a member of the Judicial Council's Task Force on Judicial Selection and Retention and Trial Court Facilities Modification Working Group. In addition, he has served on a variety of committees, including the council's Court Executives Advisory Committee (2000-2003) and the Executive Legislative Action Network (2003-2004). Mr. Mendes succeeds Ms. Sharol Strickland.

Mr. Joel S. Miliband, a senior member of the Irvine-based complex civil litigation firm Rus, Miliband & Smith, was named to the Judicial Council by the State Bar Board of Governors. He is currently a cochair of the Bench-Bar Coalition. Mr. Miliband was elected vice-president of the State Bar of California (2004-2005) and has served as a member of the bar's Board of Governors (2002-2005). Mr. Miliband is a former president of the Orange County Bar Association. He was named a 2006 Southern California Super Lawyer for peer recognition and professional achievement by Law & Politics and the publishers of Los Angeles Magazine. Mr. Miliband succeeds Ms. Barbara J. Parker.

Mr. James N. Penrod is senior counsel for Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP. He was named to the Judicial Council by the State Bar Board of Governors. Currently, he is the vice-president of the State Bar of California. Mr. Penrod has practiced trial law and litigation for more than 30 years and has tried more than 50 jury trials to verdict as well as many court trials. He was listed in Best Lawyers in America under three categories (tort litigation, business litigation, and professional liability) and has received the following honors: California Attorney of the Year in Litigation (2004), Northern California Super Lawyer (2004-2007), and Top 100 Northern California Super Lawyers (2005-2007). He was named Trial Lawyer of the Year in 2004 by the California Lawyer and is also a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the American Board of Trial Advocates. He is a member of the State Bar of New York and a graduate of the United States Naval Academy and the George Washington University Law School. Mr. James N. Penrod succeeds Mr. Thomas V. Girardi.

Presiding Judge Kenneth K. So has served on the Superior Court of San Diego County since 1998. He began his judicial career as a municipal court judge in 1994. Before that appointment, he was a deputy city attorney for the City of San Diego City Attorney's Office (1980-1994). Judge So is currently a member of the Judicial Council's Trial Court Presiding Judges Advisory Committee and its Executive Committee. He is a member of the California Judges Association and the San Diego County Judges Association and has been an instructor at the National Institute of Trial Advocacy. Presiding Judge So succeeds Presiding Judge Nancy Wieben Stock.