Governor Jerry Brown had appointed 23 Superior Court judge-ships around the state, including two Indian-American Democrats.
Attorney Somnath Raj Chatterjee and public defender Neetu Badhan Smith were named on the governor’s list.
47-year-old Chatterjee will serve in Alameda County Superior Court. Since 2017, The Oakland resident has been a partner with him. He was also a partner at Morrison and Foerster LLP from 2006 to 2017 and served as an associate from 1997 and 2005.
From1995 to 1996, he served as an associated at Sonnenschein, Nath and Rosenthal and from 1999 to 2000 at the Contra Costa County Public Defender’s Office as a deputy public defender
He graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara and earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law.
The 40-year-old Badhan-Smith has been serving as a deputy defender at the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office since 2004. She is a resident of Los Angeles and was formerly an attorney at the Southern California Housing Rights Center.
She graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles and earned a Juris Doctor degree from Southwestern Law School
The Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus lauded the appointments of Chatterjee and Badhan-Smith to the Superior Court of Contra Costa County.
Assembly member Rob Bonta, chair of the API Legislative Caucus said: “Governor Brown has selected three outstanding legal minds who will uphold the highest ideals of our judicial system.”
“It’s critical that our judiciary reflects our communities. As the fastest growing population in California, Asian Pacific Islanders have not been represented in appropriate numbers on the bench. This is a step in the right direction,” he said.
Assembly member David Chiu, served as former president of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area, said: “While California has thousands of Asian Pacific Islander attorneys, our state's judges have not reflected our diverse communities."
“At a time when the public's faith in governmental institutions is being challenged, we thank Governor Brown for appointing three of our best and brightest to carry out the duty of providing justice to all who appear before our judicial bench," said Chiu.
Assembly member Evan Low, who is the chair of the subcommittee on appointments of the API Legislative Caucus, said: “In order for Californians to have confidence in the court system, our judiciary should reflect the rich diversity of our state.”
“A diverse judiciary ensures a wider range of perspectives and allows for more decision-making power among underrepresented groups. I applaud Governor Brown for bringing us one step closer to a truly representative judiciary with the appointment of three Asian Pacific Islanders to Superior Court judge-ships,” he said.
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