John A. Kronstadt Sworn In as District Judge

Printer-friendly versionPrinter-friendly version

On April 25, 2011, former Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge John A. Kronstadt was sworn in as a federal district judge for the United States District Court, Central District of California. Judge Kronstadt was nominated by President Barack Obama on November 17, 2010, and re-nominated on January 5, 2011. He was unanimously confirmed by the Senate on April 12, 2011, and received his commission on April 14, 2011. Judge Kronstadt will preside over matters in Los Angeles in the Court’s Western Division in Courtroom 750 of the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building and Courthouse.

Judge Kronstadt served on the Los Angeles County Superior Court since his appointment in 2002 by Governor Gray Davis. Prior to serving on the state court, Judge Kronstadt was a partner at Arnold & Porter LLP in Century City since 2000, and at Blanc Williams Johnston & Kronstadt from 1985 to 2000, when its members joined Arnold & Porter LLP. Prior to moving to Los Angeles in 1985, Judge Kronstadt practiced law in the Washington, D.C. office of Arnold & Porter LLP, where he was an associate from 1978 to 1983 and a partner from 1984 to 1985. During his 24 years in private practice, he handled complex civil litigation matters, including antitrust, corporate governance, trade secrets, copyright, securities regulation, and environmental issues.

Judge Kronstadt received his undergraduate degree in government from Cornell University in 1973, graduating with distinction. After obtaining his law degree from Yale Law School in 1976, he clerked for District Judge William P. Gray of the Central District of California from 1976 to 1977.

Judge Kronstadt was active in the Los Angeles County Bar Association from 1997 to 2002, receiving its first award as outstanding committee chair in 1998 and serving as Assistant Vice President, a member of the Executive Committee, and a Trustee. He also has been active in the Constitutional Rights Foundation – a Los Angeles-based non-profit organization dedicated to educating youth about the importance of civic participation in a democratic society – since 2002, serving on the Executive Committee and Board of Directors since 2004 and as President from 2006 to 2007. While on the Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judge Kronstadt served as chair of the Court’s Community Outreach Committee and Outreach Governance Committee.

Judge Kronstadt fills the vacancy created by the death of District Judge Florence-Marie Cooper in January 2010. Including the appointment of Judge Kronstadt, the Central District of California has 28 authorized Article III judgeships, one of which remains unfilled since November 2009.

The Central District of California is comprised of the seven counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura, and serves approximately 18.5 million people – more than half the population of the state of California. Last year, over 15,000 cases were filed in the District.

Terry Nafisi
District Court Executive