News Release

Chief Justice Appoints New Members to Judicial Council

Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye made new appointments to the Judicial Council, the policymaking body of the California courts.
May 2, 2019

Update Sept. 20, 2019
Incoming and reappointed members will be sworn in at the council's public business meeting on September 24, 2019. Visit the online Meeting Center for more details.

Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye has appointed three new advisory (nonvoting) members to the Judicial Council and reappointed four members to voting positions.

“The council is responsible for ensuring the public has access to the fair and impartial administration of justice statewide,” said the Chief Justice. “Members provide their unique perspectives and experiences to help improve the judicial branch. I welcome the new members and thank them for volunteering their time, dedication, and service to strengthening our court system.”

Following are the Chief Justice’s latest appointments, effective September 15:

  • Associate Justice Carin T. Fujisaki, Court of Appeal, First Appellate District, will serve in an advisory position through September 14, 2020. Before her 2018 appointment to the First Appellate District, Division Three, Justice Fujisaki spent 28 years with the California Supreme Court, including as the principal attorney to the Chief Justice. In that capacity, Justice Fujisaki provided advice and counsel to the Chief Justice in her administration of the judicial branch.
  • Assistant Presiding Judge Eric C. Taylor, Superior Court of Los Angeles County, will serve in an advisory position through September 14, 2020. He has been on the Los Angeles bench for 21 years, and has served as a district supervising judge and on many of the court’s internal committees. Judge Taylor previously served one-year terms on the Judicial Council in 2003–2004 and 2015–2016 in an advisory position as president of the California Judges Association.
  • Court Executive Officer Kevin Harrigan, Superior Court of Tehama County, will serve in an advisory position through September 14, 2022. Harrigan has worked in court administration in California trial courts for more than 13 years. Prior to becoming the court executive officer (CEO) in Tehama in 2018, he served as CEO for the Superior Court of Glenn County (2016–2018), and Superior Court of Colusa County (2014–2015).
  • Associate Justice Marsha G. Slough, Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, will be elevated to a voting position through September 14, 2022. Before her appointment to the appellate court in 2016, Justice Slough was on the bench in San Bernardino County, where she had spent time as that court’s presiding judge, assistant presiding judge, and presiding judge of its juvenile court. Justice Slough currently serves as an advisory member of the council and chairs its Technology Committee.
  • Presiding Judge C. Todd Bottke, Superior Court of Tehama County, will remain as a voting member through September 14, 2022. He was appointed to the Superior Court of Tehama County in September 2010 and currently serves as the court’s presiding judge after several years of service as the assistant presiding judge. Judge Bottke has served as a member of the council’s Family and Juvenile Law Advisory Committee and Center for Judicial Education and Research Advisory Committee.
  • Judge Dalila C. Lyons, Superior Court of Los Angeles County, will remain as a voting member through September 14, 2022. Judge Lyons was appointed to the Los Angeles Superior Court in 2005. She is currently assigned to the court’s civil general jurisdiction department and was previously assigned to a felony trial department. Judge Lyons currently serves as vice-chair to the council’s Rules and Projects Committee.
  • Judge David M. Rubin, Superior Court of San Diego County, will remain as a voting member through September 14, 2022. He has been a member of the California Judges Association (CJA) board of directors since 2009 and served as CJA’s president for the 2011–2012 term. As president of the CJA, he served as an advisory member of the Judicial Council. Judge Rubin is a current member of the Bench Bar Coalition and chairs the council’s Judicial Branch Budget Committee and Litigation Management Committee.


Judicial Council Membership
According to the state Constitution, the Chief Justice chairs the Judicial Council and appoints one other Supreme Court justice, three justices from the courts of appeal, 10 trial court judges, two nonvoting court administrators, “and any other nonvoting members as determined by the voting membership of the council.” The State Bar’s governing body appoints four members, and the state Senate and Assembly each appoint one member.

Council members are volunteers and do not receive additional compensation for their service. Most members serve three-year terms, and each year about a third of the membership rotates off and a new group is sworn in.