Susan Illston

Susan Illston
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Current Court Information:
United States District Court for the Northern District of California
Title:	Judge
Position:	Seat #2
Service:
Appointed by:	Bill Clinton
Active:	5/26/1995 - Present
Preceded by:	Barbara Caulfield
Personal History
Born:	1948
Home State:	Tokyo, Japan
Bachelors:	Duke U., B.A., 1970
Law School:	Stanford Law School, J.D., 1973

Susan Yvonne Illston is a federal judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. She joined the court in 1995 after being nominated by President Bill Clinton.

Early life and education

Born in Japan, Illston graduated from Duke with her Bachelor's Degree in 1970 and graduated from Stanford Law School with her Juris Doctor Degree in 1973.

Professional career

Illston spent her entire pre-judicial legal career as a private practice attorney licensed in the State of California from 1973 to 1995.

Judicial career

Northern District of California

On the unanimous recommendation of U.S. Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstien, Illston was nominated by President Bill Clinton on January 23, 1995 to a seat vacated by Barbara Caulfield. Illston was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on May 25, 1995 on a majority voice vote and received her commission on May 26, 1995.

Notable cases

Controversial dog ruling

United States District Court for the Northern District of California      *Mittich, et al. v. City of Fremont, et al. Nos. C 12-4333 SI

In August 2012, Judge Illston was criticized by animal rights supporters for this decision, in which she denied a temporarily restraining order to prevent putting a dog down. The dog was labeled a "dangerous dog" after biting a nine-year old at the owners' home. According the plaintiffs, under the Hayden Act, the dog (and owners) should be entitled to an administrative hearing prior to being labeled as such, and be held for 72 hours in a shelter before being killed. Instead, Judge Illston declared that the previous owners no longer had standing in the case, since after the incident ownership was transferred to the City of Fremont. With no standing, the temporary restraining order was denied and the dog was put down.

Samsung anti-trust case

United States District Court for the Northern District of California      *IN RE TFT-LCD (FLAT PANEL) ANTITRUST LITIGATION Nos. M 07-1827 SI, 1827

On March 29, 2010, Judge Illston authorized a class-action lawsuit against nine television makers over allegations of price fixing. The lawsuit was filed by a group of direct buyers who bought the televisions made by the two companies from 1999 to 2006. As part of the certification, customers in 22 other states and the District of Columbia could join in the lawsuit. In October 2012, it was announced that the manufacturers did participate in price fixing on LCD flat-panel screen televisions. The television makers agreed to a $1.1 billion settlement which directly refunded consumers who were affected by the scheme.

California desert case

United States District Court for the Northern District of California      *Center for Biological Diversity, et al. vs. U.S. Bureau of Land Management, et al. No. C 06-4884 SI
On September 29, 2009, Judge Illston ruled against a land management plan by the US Bureau of Land Management for a California desert. Judge Illston found that a plan to designate 5,000 miles of the West Mojave desert for off-road vehicle use did not take into account environmental impacts towards the desert.

Barry Bonds trial

United States District Court for the Northern District of California      *USA v. Bonds 3:07-cr-00732-SI

Judge Illston was the presiding trial judge in the trial of baseball legend Barry Bonds. Bonds faced trial in Judge Illston's courtroom on March 2, 2009. On November 16, 2007, Bonds was indicted by a federal grand jury in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice during testimony involving BALCO in which Victor Conte and former San Francisco Giants trainer Greg Anderson were convicted on steroid trafficking charges. During the criminal investigation leading up to the grand jury indictment, evidence was obtained that included positive tests for the presence of anabolic steroids and other performance enhancing substances for Bonds and other athletes that have been implicated by the scandal. Bonds faced charges on four counts of perjury and one count of obstructing justice, which together carry a maximum penalty of 30 years in jail. In the end, Judge Illston ruled a mistrial on three charges that Bonds made false statements, and Bonds was only charged with one count of obstruction of justice.

See also

• United States District Court for the Northern District of California

External links

• Barry Bonds Trial Information from the United States District Court for the District of Northern California
• Judge Illston's webpage at the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
• Judge Illston's Biography at the Federal Judicial Center.

References

Federal judicial offices
Preceded by: Barbara Caulfield	Northern District of California 1995–Current Seat #2	Succeeded by: NA