Los Angeles County Superior Court
Career Highlights: Appointed Los Angeles County Superior Court judge, May 7, 2025; assistant U.S. attorney, Central District of California, 2019-25; associate, Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP, 2014-19; deputy city attorney fellowship, Los Angeles, 2017; law clerk for 6th Circuit Court of Appeals Justice Helene N. White, Ohio, 2013-14; law clerk for U.S. District Court Judge Stephen J. Murphy III, Eastern District of Michigan, 2011-13
Law School: University of Michigan Law School, 2011
Career Highlights: Appointed Los Angeles County Superior Court judge, May 7, 2025; assistant U.S. attorney, Central District of California, 2019-25; associate, Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP, 2014-19; deputy city attorney fellowship, Los Angeles, 2017; law clerk for 6th Circuit Court of Appeals Justice Helene N. White, Ohio, 2013-14; law clerk for U.S. District Court Judge Stephen J. Murphy III, Eastern District of Michigan, 2011-13
Law School: University of Michigan Law School, 2011
LOS ANGELES - Superior Court Judge Maria Jhai said studying anthropology taught her something she still brings to the bench: the danger of assuming too quickly that she understands what she is seeing.
"You, as an observer, are bringing your own experiences to any kind of perception or judgment that you try to make," she said. "What are my assumptions? What's my bias? Where am I starting from?"
That lesson, she said, guides her work in t... (continued)
