Senate Confirms State Bar Court Judge Cynthia Valenzuela Dixon as United States District Judge for the Central District of California

On December 10, 2024, the United States Senate confirmed President Joe Biden’s nomination of State Bar Court Judge Cynthia Valenzuela Dixon to serve as a federal district judge in the United States District Court for the Central District of California.  Judge Valenzuela will preside over matters in Los Angeles in the Court’s Western Division. 

Judge Valenzuela has served as a Hearing Judge on the State Bar Court of California in Los Angeles since her appointment by the Supreme Court of California in 2016.  She has presided over attorney disciplinary and regulatory cases.  She also served as the Supervising Hearing Judge from 2020 to 2022.

From 2011 to 2016, Judge Valenzuela served as the Criminal Justice Act Supervising Attorney for the United States District Court for the Central District of California.  In that role, she assisted with the administration and management of the Court’s panel of attorneys appointed to represent indigent criminal defendants under the Criminal Justice Act.  From 2006 to 2011, Judge Valenzuela worked as the National Vice President and Director of Litigation of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund.  In addition to litigating broad impact and class action civil rights cases, she directed the national litigation strategy and supervised the legal work of trial attorneys nationwide.

From 2000 to 2006, Judge Valenzuela served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.  From 2000 to 2002, she served in the General Crimes Section where she prosecuted a broad range of federal offenses, and from 2002 to 2006, she served in the Public Corruption and Government Fraud Section where she prosecuted complex public corruption and sophisticated government fraud cases.  She handled all stages of litigation from pre-charge investigations through appeal and post-conviction matters. 

Before joining the United States Attorney’s Office, from 1998 to 2000, Judge Valenzuela served as a trial attorney in the Civil Rights Division of the United States Department of Justice focusing on enforcement of the Voting Rights Act.  From 1995 to 1998, Judge Valenzuela served as a Special Assistant to the Vice-Chairperson of the United States Commission on Civil Rights.

Judge Valenzuela has been active in several bar and judges associations, including the American Bar Association National Conference of State Trial judges, California Judges Association, National Association of Women Judges, Hispanic National Bar Association, and Mexican American Bar Association.  She has also dedicated time to encouraging and preparing the next generation of lawyers to pursue careers in public interest by speaking on panels, serving as a mentor, and assisting with moot court competitions as both a coach and judge.

Judge Valenzuela received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Arizona in 1991 and her Juris Doctor degree from UCLA School of Law in 1995.

Judge Valenzuela fills the vacancy that arose when former District Judge Philip S. Gutierrez retired in October 2024.  The Central District of California has 28 authorized Article III judgeships, one of which is currently unfilled.  The Central District of California is comprised of the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo.  It serves more than 19.3 million people, nearly half the population of the State of California.

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BRIAN D. KARTH
DISTRICT COURT EXECUTIVE / CLERK OF COURT