Judge Nicole Bershon was appointed to the Los Angeles Superior Court in 2013 by Governor Jerry Brown. She currently sits at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse where she oversees a family law home court. Judge Bershon joined the family law bench from the Second Division Court of Appeal, Division Three, where she served as a pro tem justice for six months. While there, she authored over 30 opinions, including five published decisions.

Prior to serving on the Court of Appeal, Judge Bershon oversaw a Community Collaborative Court at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, which focused on providing alternatives to incarceration for certain at-risk populations, including veterans, the chronically homeless, the mentally ill, and those suffering from addiction.

Previously, she sat at the Torrance Courthouse, where her assignments included misdemeanor and felony trials and preliminary hearings. Prior to her arrival at Torrance, she served as the Site Judge for the Inglewood Courthouse, overseeing daily operations, while handling a busy small claims courtroom. Before becoming a judge, she served as a court commissioner for two years.

Judge Bershon has served on the Court’s Executive, Community Outreach, Court Security, Jury, and Temporary Judge Committees. She currently serves on the Executive Board of the California Judges Association and is an incoming Vice-President of the organization. She is also a founding board member of California Women Judges and currently serves as a member at large.

After graduating from law school, Judge Bershon entered private practice with Stutman, Treister & Glatt, and, later, with Irell & Manella, where she handled bankruptcy, civil and criminal litigation, and corporate matters. She then spent six years with the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office, handling both civil and criminal matters, including a number of domestic violence cases. Before joining the bench, Judge Bershon spent almost 10 years with the Office of the Inspector General for the Los Angeles Police Commission, first as an Assistant Inspector General, and later as Inspector General for the LAPD.

Judge Bershon is a former President of the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles and is a prior recipient of their Distinguished Service Award. In addition, she has served on the boards of California Women Lawyers, the Los Angeles County Bar Association, and the Multicultural Bar Alliance of Southern California. She is a Past President of the UCLA Law Alumni Association.

Judge Bershon is a graduate of Princeton University, where she co-captained the women’s rugby team. She received her law degree from the UCLA School of Law, where she served as Co-Editor-in-Chief of the UCLA Women’s Law Journal. She has taught Criminal and Constitutional Law at USC’s Gould School of Law, and Advanced Criminal Procedure at the University of California, Irvine School of Law.