Irma Elsa Gonzalez

Judge Gonzalez is a longtime judge in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.http://www.fjc.gov/servlet/tGetInfo?jid=879] She was the first Mexican-American female federal judge. [http://womenslegalhistory.stanford.edu/papers/GonzalesI-Chavez97.pdf] She was nominated by George H.W. Bush on April 9, 1992, to a seat vacated by J. Lawrence Irving. The U.S. Senate confirmed her nomination on August 11, 1992. She has served as the chief judge of the Southern District of California from 2005 until the present. Prior to her service as a District Court Judge, Chief Judge Gonzalez served as a United States Magistrate Judge from 1984 until 1991.

Education

*Stanford University, B.A., 1970
*University of Arizona College of Law, J.D., 1973

Professional career

*Law clerk, Hon. William C. Frey, U.S. District Court, District of Arizona, 1973-1975
*Assistant U.S. attorney, Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney's Office, Arizona, 1975-1979
*Trial attorney, U.S. Department of Justice, Antitrust Division, Los Angeles, California, 1979
*Assistant U.S. attorney, Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney's Office, Central District of California, 1979-1981
*Private practice, San Diego, California, 1981-1984
*Judge, California Superior Court, San Diego County, 1991-1992

Sources