Brown and Groban made state judiciary more diverse than the bar

At first glance, the scene when Gov. Jerry Brown swore in new California Supreme Court Justice Joshua P. Groban on Thursday was familiar in American history: one powerful white man conferring status on another.

But between them, the pair undertook an unprecedented transformation of the state's judiciary, leaving a bench that is in some ways more diverse than the California State Bar.

"He's done a phenomenal job changing the demographics of our judiciary," said Brown appointee Justice Therese M. Stewart of the 1st District Court of Appeal, Division Two. Stewart was the first lesbian named to an appeal court in California.

According to annual figures released by the administration after the ceremony, these trends and their overall impact on the state bench increased during Brown's last year in office.

Part of this is due to sheer numbers. Of the 644 judges and justices Brown appointed, with Groban serving as his chief advisor, 193 came in 2018 alone.

California Gov. Jerry Brown

While 44 percent of the appointees overall were women, during the past year it was over half. About 40 percent of Brown's appointments over the last eight years identify as non-white, though that number ticked up slightly during the last year as well. Six percent of Brown's appointees identity as LGBT.

The data included figures for the overall makeup of the bench, but these don't show Brown's full impact because they go only through the end of 2017. His appointments also represent just a third of the state bench. The remainder were elected or appointed by his predecessors.

Still, since Brown took office, Hispanics grew from 8.2 percent of judges and justices to 10.3 percent, African-Americans from 5.6 percent to 7.3 percent, and Asian American from 5.4 percent to 7.2 percent. Each of these groups has higher representation on the bench than in the State Bar.

The percentage of women grew from 30.8 to 34.5, though this will likely rise to around 36 percent once Brown's 2018 appointments are included. Women make up just under 41 percent of the State Bar. Only 3.2 percent of current California judges identify themselves as LGBT, though nearly 30 percent declined to answer that question.

Brown's press release also identified nearly 50 firsts among his appointments. These include first South Asian woman appointed in California, the first Hmong judge ever appointed in the United States, and the first gay man and gay woman named to the California appeals courts.

The annual reports -- and Brown's overall judicial diversity goals -- have sometimes been criticized for not including religious, geographic or political diversity, though both Brown and his Republican predecessor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, have been praised at times for their willingness to appoint judges from the other party.

Judge demographics

However, those characteristics are not among the data demanded when the Legislature passed a bill in 2006 requiring the governor, the Commission on Judicial Nominations Evaluation and the Judicial Council begin gathering the racial and gender information on judicial applicants and appointments. A law signed in 2011 added LGBT status, and another in 2013 included veteran and disability status.

Only 3.3 percent of Brown's appointees have been veterans. They make up 8.2 of the bench and 9.8 percent of the bar.

But members of the disabled community have been probably the most persistent critics of Brown's appointments. He has appointed six judges who identify as having a disability. Just 2.4 of California judges identify as having a disability, compared to 4.5 percent of the bar.

These numbers are likely unreported "due to discrimination," Peter A. Lynch, office managing partner and vice chair with Cozen O'Connor in San Diego. According to the definition under the Americans with Disabilities Act, nearly one in five people has some form or disability. Lynch added he hopes to see more disabled appointees when the full 2018 data comes out next year.

"It's not just the court system that people where disabilities are not included, it's the legal field at all levels," Lynch said. "We need someone, maybe the new governor, to address this."