Central District (Los Angeles)
Career Highlights: U.S. District Judge O'Connell was nominated to California's Central District by President Barack Obama in 2012. She suffered a brain aneurysm on Sept. 15, while attending a court event. She died Oct. 8. She was 52. Despite her short tenure, O'Connell made a lasting legacy on the Central District, according to attorneys and judges who knew her well. Among her accomplishments was the "power lunch" program that introduced young people to the court system. She chaired the intellectual property committee and was widely credited with pushing the court to adopt new technology. O'Connell previously sat on the Los Angeles County Superior Court and was an assistant U.S. attorney. O'Connell's law school, Pepperdine University, established a scholarship in her honor. The Honorable Beverly Reid O'Connell Memorial Scholarship will be given each year to one or more law students who embody the characteristics she personified, according to the school website.
Career Highlights: U.S. District Judge O'Connell was nominated to California's Central District by President Barack Obama in 2012. She suffered a brain aneurysm on Sept. 15, while attending a court event. She died Oct. 8. She was 52. Despite her short tenure, O'Connell made a lasting legacy on the Central District, according to attorneys and judges who knew her well. Among her accomplishments was the "power lunch" program that introduced young people to the court system. She chaired the intellectual property committee and was widely credited with pushing the court to adopt new technology. O'Connell previously sat on the Los Angeles County Superior Court and was an assistant U.S. attorney. O'Connell's law school, Pepperdine University, established a scholarship in her honor. The Honorable Beverly Reid O'Connell Memorial Scholarship will be given each year to one or more law students who embody the characteristics she personified, according to the school website.
By Henry Meier
Daily Journal Staff Writer
LOS ANGELES - U.S. District Judge Beverly Reid O'Connell is quickly making an impression on litigants in the Central District.
In the 18 months since she assumed her current position as an Article III judicial officer, O'Connell has impressed attorneys with both her intellect and her empathy.
"She is among the smartest judges I've appeared before," said Deputy Los Angeles City Attorn... (continued)
