Judith D. Ford

Judge

Alameda County Superior Court

Oakland, California

Judge Judith D. Ford is a judge of the California Superior Court, Alameda County. Judge Ford has been actively involved in court technology issues at the local, state and national level, for a number of years. She received a B.S. in Business Administration with an emphasis on accounting at the University of California at Berkeley in 1957, then spent 15 years as a Computer Scientist, designing on-line operating systems. Her interest in law encouraged her return to Berkeley to complete her J.D. from Boalt Hall in 1974. She has also served as a judge of the --- Oakland-Piedmont-Emeryvillee Municipal Court and was elected Presiding Judge of that court in 1987. Before taking the bench she was the Regional Director for the Federal Trade Commission in the San Francisco Office. Prior to assuming that office she was the Assistant Chief I of Civil and Criminal Litigation for the Consumer Fraud/Economic Crime Division of the San Francisco District Attorney's Office.

 Judge Ford taught at the College of Trial Advocacy on a volunteer basis and was an Adjunct Professor for Hastings College of Law from 1977 to 1980.  Judge Ford is a member of the Alameda County Bar Association and the Charles Houston Bar Association.  She has served as anExecutive Board Member of the California Judges Association. Judge Ford chairs the Technology Advisory Committee of the Judicial Council of California (CTC), the Alameda County Superior Court Information Technology Committee, the Center for Judicial Education and Research Planning Committee for Development of Information Technology Guide (CJER), and is the President of the Board of Trustees for the Bernard E. Witkin Alameda County Law Library.  She formerly chaired the DOMAIN steering Committee in connection with the development of a Countywide Court Management system. was appointed to the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of California to the U.S. Magistrate Merit Selection Committee in 1982. 

Judge Ford also has a tireless interest in civil rights in the legal profession and has been a member of the Gender Bias Advisory Committee to the Judicial Council, Board Member of the Foundation for Women's' Resources, a member of the California Association of Black Lawyers and has chaired the Northern California Finance Committee for Black Women Lawyers.  She was awarded the Alameda County Women Lawyers™ Career Achievement Award in October 1999.  Judge Ford is also the co-author of chapters 4 & 6 of the California Criminal Law Procedure and Practice Manual (CEB 1994, 2nd Ed.).