Laurie Earl. Source: https://www.gov.ca.gov/2021/11/29/governor-newsom-announces-judicial-appointments-11-29-21/
University of California, Berkeley. Photo: Gku, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Berkeley_glade_afternoon.jpg)
University of California, Berkeley. Photo: Gku, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Berkeley_glade_afternoon.jpg)
Laurie M. Earl was born in 1961 in San Jose, California, and was raised in Modesto. Her professional life has been centered in Sacramento, where she developed a career in criminal law, public defense, prosecution, judicial administration, and appellate judging.
Earl studied political science at the University of California, Berkeley, one of the leading public research universities in the United States and a major center of political and legal scholarship. She received a bachelor's degree before entering legal education.
She earned her Juris Doctor from Lincoln Law School of Sacramento in 1988. Founded in 1969, the school provides part-time legal education for students preparing for professional practice and has educated many members of the Sacramento legal community. Earl later taught Criminal Law Pleading and Practice at the school.
Earl began her legal career in Sacramento after being admitted to the State Bar of California in 1989. She served as an assistant public defender in the Sacramento County Public Defender's Office from 1989 to 1995, representing people in criminal proceedings within the public-defense system.
From 1995 to 2004, she was a deputy district attorney in the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office. Her assignments included domestic violence, sexual assault, and homicide matters, giving her experience in major areas of criminal prosecution and trial practice.
Earl served as senior assistant inspector general at the Sacramento County Office of the Inspector General from 2004 to 2005. In that capacity she supervised independent review of internal-affairs investigations involving the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
In 2005, Earl became a judge of the Sacramento County Superior Court, where she presided over civil, criminal, and juvenile-dependency cases until 2021. She served as assistant presiding judge from 2010 to 2012 and as presiding judge from 2012 to 2013. Her judicial administration included statewide work on trial-court leadership and budgeting.
Governor Gavin Newsom nominated Earl to the California Third District Court of Appeal in November 2021, and the Commission on Judicial Appointments unanimously confirmed her on January 6, 2022. She initially served as an associate justice and later became Administrative Presiding Justice of the appellate district, whose regular sessions are held in Sacramento. She has also taught criminal law and judicial ethics and has participated in judicial education.
Earl helped develop a methodology for allocating state trial-court funding among California's 58 trial courts while serving in statewide judicial leadership roles. The work contributed to the administration of California's trial-court financing system.
Earl has contributed to legal and civic education by teaching Criminal Law Pleading and Practice at Lincoln Law School of Sacramento and providing instruction in judicial education courses on criminal law and ethics.
Laurie M. Earl is affiliated with the Democratic Party. Her public career has developed primarily through legal practice and judicial service rather than elective party politics. The Democratic Party is one of the two major political parties in the United States and has historically encompassed liberal and progressive currents, including support for civil rights, public institutions, and access to legal and social services.
Earl's professional work reflects a commitment to the rule of law, procedural fairness, judicial independence, and the effective administration of justice. Her career across public defense, prosecution, trial judging, appellate judging, and court administration has placed her within different institutional roles of the criminal and judicial systems.
Earl has served on statewide judicial committees and special assignments concerned with court administration, judicial performance, jury selection, and the future of California's court system. These bodies connect trial and appellate judges with statewide efforts to improve the administration, financing, and fairness of California courts.
Member
Commission on the Future of California's Court System , United States
2014 - 2014
Special master
California Commission on Judicial Performance , United States
2019 - 2019
Member
California Supreme Court Jury Selection Workgroup , United States
2020 - 2020
Chair
Judicial Council of California Trial Court Presiding Judge Advisory Committee , United States
2012 - 2013
Chair
Judicial Council of California Trial Court Budget Advisory Committee , United States
2012 - September, 2015
