Supreme Court Makes Appointments to State Bar Board of Trustees, Committee of Bar Examiners, and State Bar Court

The Supreme Court of California on Friday announced appointments to three State Bar of California entities: the Board of Trustees, Committee of Bar Examiners, and the State Bar Court.

The court made two re-appointments to the State Bar of California’s Board of Trustees, effective Sept. 23:

• Current chair Ruben Duran was named chair for a second one-year term. Duran was first appointed to the board in 2018 by the Assembly Speaker. He is managing partner of Best Best & Krieger, LLP’s Ontario office.
   
• Trustee Brandon N. Stallings was named vice chair for a one-year term, and also re-appointed to serve another four-year term on the board. Stallings is a deputy district attorney in Kern County.

The court also made two officer appointments to the State Bar’s Committee of Bar Examiners, for one-year terms effective Sept. 18. The committee oversees development and administration of the California Bar Exam and reviews the moral character determination and admissions processes for attorneys. The committee also accredits state law schools and registers unaccredited state law schools.

• Attorney Paul Kramer was named chair. He has been a member of the committee since 2016, originally appointed by the Board of Trustees.
   
• Dr. Michael Cao was appointed as vice chair. Dr. Cao was first pointed by the Assembly Speaker in 2020.

The court also made four judicial appointments to the State Bar Court of California, which rules on attorney discipline cases:

• Incumbent review department Judge Richard Honn was appointed as presiding judge. Judge Honn will serve the remaining four years of his term in that position.
   
• Judge W. Kearse McGill was re-appointed to a six-year term on the review department, which is the State Bar Court’s appellate level.
   
• Administrative Law Judge Tamara Ribas was appointed to the term vacated last year by Judge Catherine D. Purcell in the court’s review department. That partial term will end Oct. 31, 2024. Judge Ribas currently hears cases for the United States Merit Systems Protection Board.
   
• Judge Cynthia Valenzuela was re-appointed to a six-year term as a hearing department judge in Los Angeles, which is the State Bar Court’s trial court level.