Thurs: Commission to Consider Appellate Court Appointment

Link to public documents here.

SAN FRANCISCO—The Commission on Judicial Appointments will hold a public hearing at 11 a.m. on June 16 to consider Gov. Gavin Newsom's appointment of Judge Joanne Motoike as Associate Justice of the Fourth District Court of Appeal, Division Three (Santa Ana).

The hearing will take place in the Supreme Court Courtroom, 350 McAllister Street, 4th Floor, in San Francisco, and will be webcast live on the California Courts Newsroom.

The Commission members are:

•  Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye (Chair)
•  Attorney General Rob Bonta
•  Presiding Justice Manuel A. Ramirez

Seating in the courtroom will be limited—with some overflow seating also available in the auditorium—and any mask requirements will be enforced as may be required by state and local health directives in effect at the time of the hearing. 

The state Constitution specifies that a gubernatorial nomination or appointment to the Supreme Court or a Court of Appeal is “effective when confirmed by the Commission on Judicial Appointments.”

The commission consists of the chief justice of California, the attorney general of California, and the presiding justice of the Court of Appeal of the affected district or, if there are two or more presiding justices, the one who has presided longest or, for a nomination or appointment to the Supreme Court, the presiding justice who has presided the longest on any Court of Appeal.

Appointee Biography

Judge Joanne Motoike would fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice Richard M. Aronson. Judge Motoike has served as an Orange County Superior Court judge since 2013, where she served as presiding judge of the juvenile court from 2018 to 2022. Judge Motoike served as a senior deputy public defender at the Orange County Public Defender’s Office from 2008 to 2013. She was a trial attorney at the United Nations Office of the Prosecutor, International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia from 2006 to 2008 and a deputy public defender at the Orange County Public Defender’s Office from 1994 to 2006. Judge Motoike earned a Juris Doctor degree from Loyola Law School, Los Angeles. 

Testimony and Comment

Persons who wish to testify or comment on the appointment must submit their information for receipt by the commission no later than 5 p.m. on June 9. Anyone wishing to testify before the commission must state that request in writing and include a summary of the facts on which any testimony or opinion will be based.

Submissions via email to coja@jud.ca.gov are strongly encouraged. Hard copies are not required.

If you would like to mail your request, you may also reach the commission at:

Commission on Judicial Appointments
c/o Chief Justice of California
Supreme Court of California
350 McAllister Street
San Francisco, California 94102
Attention: Secretary to the Commission

Guidelines for the Commission on Judicial Appointments are published in the appendix to the California Rules of Court and are posted on the California Courts website.