Hon. FRANK J. OCHOA (Ret.)
Arbitrator/Mediator/Attorney/Referee/Special Master
Retired Judge of the Superior Court
Destination Dispute Resolution LLC
Of Counsel
The Sanger Firm
222 East Carrillo St., Suite 300, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
• (805) 962-4887 • Cell: (805) 451-1240 • Fax (805) 963-7311 •
Email:
FrankOchoa@destinationadr.com
fochoa@sangerlawfirm.com
Website:www.frankochoa.com or
destinationadr.com
Southern California Mediation Association’s Judge of the Year (2000)
Current Employment
Principal: Destination Dispute Resolution LLC.
Of Counsel: Sanger Firm. Mediation and Arbitration practice with limited case representation in civil and criminal cases
Panelist or Member:
- National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals (Diplomate Member)
- California Academy of Distinguished Neutrals (Diplomate Member)
- State Mediation and Conciliation Service--California Public Employment Relations Board
- American Arbitration Association
- Alternative Resolution Centers
- Southern California Mediation Association
- Santa Barbara County Superior Court (CADRe Program)
- Ventura County Superior Court Mediation Program
- FORUM—Alternative Dispute Resolution Provider
Judicial Experience
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY COURTS
Judge of the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara (1997-2015) 1/6/97 - 1/3/15
Trial court judge: full range of civil, family, probate, criminal, and juvenile matters
- Elected to position effective 1/6/97; re-elected 11/5/02, 11/4/08, and 11/04/14
- Presiding Judge (1/98–1/01)
- Designed and Implemented Santa Barbara Superior Court’s CADRe
(Court Administered Appropriate Dispute Resolution) “ADR” Program
- Designed and Implemented Santa Barbara Superior Court’s
Adult and Juvenile Drug Court Programs
Judge of the Santa Barbara Municipal Court (1983-2015) 1/2/83 - 1/5/97
- Appointed 1/2/83, Elected1988 and 1994
- Presiding Judge (1/87–1/89, 1/93 - 1/95)
- Acting (Assistant) PresidingJudge (3/83–1/85, 1/86–1/87, 1/92-1/93)
CALIFORNIA COURT OF APPEAL
Justice pro Tempore 5/85 - 7/85
- Assigned by the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court: Second Appellate
District, Division Six. Authored published and unpublished opinions
Statewide Committees and Associations
CALIFORNIA JUDICIAL COUNCIL
Member, Probation Services Task Force (PSTF) 8/00 - 7/03
Chair, PSTF Services and Caseload Standards Subcommittee 9/00 - 7/03
PSTF Liaison, Proposition 36 Implementation Workgroup 12/00 - 7/03
Member, Presiding Judges Advisory Committee (PJAC) 4/99 - 1/01
Member, PJAC Transitional Executive Committee 5/00 - 1/01
Member, Trial Court Budget Commission 11/98 - 12/00
Special Master, California Commission on Judicial Performance 12/05/06 - 1/3/15
Appointed by California Supreme Court to review allegations of judicial misconduct
and conduct evidentiary proceedings.
CALIFORNIA JUDGES ASSOCIATION
Executive Board Member, California Judges Association (CJA) 1/83
Executive Board Member, Juvenile Court Judges of California (JCJC) 9/00 - 7/03
Team Captain, JCJC Legislative Review Committee 2/01 - 4/02
Chair, CJA Court Administration Committee 9/88 - 9/90
Member, CJA Court Administration Committee 9/84 - 9/88
Member, Court Personnel Subcommittee 9/84 - 9/88
Chair, Municipal and Justice Courts Subcommittee 9/84 - 9/88
Education
Juris Doctor, Martin Luther King Jr. School of Law, University of California, Davis 1975
Bachelor of Arts (English and History-double major), University of California, Santa Barbara 1972
- Dean’s Honor List – Winter 1971, Spring 1972
Associate of Arts, in English, Long Beach City College 1970
- Dean’s Honor Roll, 3 semesters
ADR Courses
Mediation Certificate of Training, Pepperdine University School of Law, 2001
Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, Continuing Judicial Studies Program (40 hrs.)
Mediation Certificate of Training, “Mediating Commercial & Litigated Cases” 2015
American Institute of Mediation (40 hrs.)
MCLE Course, “Avoiding Damaging Mistakes in Mediation”, Santa Barbara County Bar 2015
Assn. 7/21/15
American Arbitration Association, “Arbitration Fundamentals and Best Practices for New 2016
AAA Arbitrators”
American Arbitration Association, “Award Writing” 2016
American Arbitration Association, “Protecting the Reasoned Arbitration Award” 2017
American Arbitration Association, “Arbitrator Performance and Demeanor: Meeting 2018
Participants Expectations”
American Arbitration Association, “Advanced Mediator Training Series: Expanding the 2018
Mediators Toolbox “Blending Advanced Mediator Strategies”
American Arbitration Association, “The ICDR’s International Arbitration Rules-Assessing 2019
the Impact of the 2014 Amendments”
American Arbitration Association, “ICDR Awards and Commentaries: Is International 2019
Arbitration Different than Domestic Arbitration?”
National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals (NADN), “Advanced Mediation Training 2019
Course in Seattle, WA”-Awarded Diplomate Membership
American Arbitration Association, “ACE 19-Case Finances: What Arbitrators Need to Know” 2019
California Administrative Office of the Courts, “California Rules of Conduct for Mediators 2019
in Court Connected Mediation Programs for Civil Cases”
American Arbitration Association, “Dispositive Motion Practice in Arbitration: The Tide 2019
is Rising”
American Arbitration Association, “The American Arbitration Association’s Adoption of 2020
Initial Employment and FLSA Discovery Protocols”
American Arbitration Association, “Best Practices for Arbitrators in Expedited/Fast Track 2020
Arbitrations”
American Arbitration Association, “Dispute Prevention: From Reaction to Proaction” 2020
American Arbitration Association, “ACE 21-Impartiality: Do You Know Where Your Biases 2021
Are?”
Santa Barbara County Bar Association, “2022 and Beyond: High Impact Employment Law 2021
Developments to Be Aware of in the New Year”
American Arbitration Association, ACE 22 “Process Essentials for AAA Arbitrators” 2022
National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals (NADN), “2022 Advanced Mediation Training 2022
Course in Atlanta, GA”
American Arbitration Association, 2023 AAA/ICDR/AAA Mediation.org Panel Conference 2023
Southern California Mediation Association, “Behind Closed Doors: The Secret Powers of 2023
Mediators” MCLE Webinar. Daniel Ben-Zvi, Esq. and Lee Jay Berman.
American Arbitration Association, “A Practical Approach to Handling Evidentiary 2023
Objections in Arbitration”
Santa Barbara County Bar Association, by the American Institute of Mediation, Lee Jay 2024
Berman “The Magic of Mediation”
American Arbitration Association, “(ACE 24) Disclosure Dynamics in Arbitration” 2024
Prior Employment and Experience
Executive Director, Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County 9/80—1/83
Directing Attorney, Legal Services of Northern California–Yolo County 8/76—8/80
Staff Attorney, Legal Services of Northern California–Yolo County 4/76—7/76
Staff Attorney, Legal Services of Northern California-Sacramento Office 1/76 - 4/76
Intern, Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office Fall 1974
Intern, Colorado State Public Defender’s Office Summer 1974
Intern, Sacramento Concilio’s Centro Legal 1973—1974
Admissions to Practice Law:
- Admitted to practice law in the State of California (1975), State Bar Number 67011
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California (1976)
- U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1979)
- U.S Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (1980)
University and Law School Teaching
Lecturer, “Latinos and the American Legal System” College of Letters and Sciences, Fall 2016
University of California at Santa Barbara, Interdisciplinary Studies--Interdisciplinary 185LL
Lecturer, “Latinos and the American Legal System” Political Science Department, University Spring 2015
of California at Santa Barbara--Political Science 106AP
Lecturer, “Law and Civil Rights” during 10 Quarters in the Chicana/o Studies Department 2009-2019
University of California at Santa Barbara—Chicana/o Studies 172
Professor, Santa Barbara College of Law: Taught courses in Legal Method and Process, 1992-1997
Statutory Law, and Professional Ethics
Community College Instructor Lifetime Credential No. 10465
Subject Matter Area: Law
Public or Professional Education Presentations
Coordinator and Participant, “Meet Your Judges Forum—Santa Barbara County”
California Judges’ Association, State Bar of California 1990
Seminar Instructor, “Chicano Society and Culture: An International Conference”
Center for Chicano Studies, University of California Santa Barbara 1990
Panelist, Annual Statutory Civil Law Update, Civil Law Institute
California Center for Judicial Education and Research 1990
Moderator and Panelist, “What is Happening in Dependency Court”
California County Social Welfare Department Directors Statewide Annual Conference 1999
Panelist, Judicial Council Probation Services Task Force: Roundtable Discussions on Child
Welfare and Delinquency, “Beyond the Bench” Dependency Conference 2000
Moderator and Panelist, “My Child * Your Children . . . Are they Safe?”
Santa Barbara Community Forum sponsored by the Santa Barbara County Public Health
Department, Family Service Agency, and Child Abuse Listening and Mediation Services 2001
Panelist, Prop. 36 Working Group, California Drug Court Symposium 2001
Panelist, Integrating ADR Processes with Case Management Systems
Statewide Conference on Court-Connected ADR Programs for Civil Cases 2001
Panelist, Probation Services Task Force Roundtable Discussion
California Juvenile Delinquency & The Courts Conference 2001
Panelist, “How to Provide Effective Services to Non-English Speaking Self-Represented
Litigants,” Assisting Self-Represented Litigants in California Conference 2001
Faculty, Adult Drug Court Skills–Based Planning Workshop, Drug Courts Programs Office,
Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Dept. Of Justice and the National Drug Court Institute 2004
Keynote Conference Speaker, 13th Annual Conference
California Association of Probation Services Administrators 2008
Panelist, “Human Rights v. Youth Violence: Conflict or Not?”
Santa Barbara County Bar Foundation Law Week 2010
Keynote Conference Speaker, Kern County Mediation Conference
Keynote Conference Speaker, Opening Ceremonies 2010
116th Annual California State Sheriffs’ Association Conference
Panelist, “Civil Court Judicial Forum: Advanced Discovery and Trial Practice”
National Business Institute, Inc., Ventura, CA 2013
Presenter, “Elimination of Bias” Santa Barbara County Bar Association’s
2013 Bench and Bar Conference and a subsequent session MCLE Credit Sessions 2013
Panelist, “As Judges See It: Top Mistakes Attorneys Make in Civil Litigation”
National Business Institute, Inc., Santa Barbara, CA 2013
Presenter, “Elimination of Bias and Avoiding Discrimination Claims”
Office of the County Counsel for the County of Santa Barbara (Feb.), and the Santa Barbara
Barrister’s Club (Nov.) MCLE Credit Sessions 2015
Co-Presenter, “Ethics in Mediation”
Santa Barbara County Bar Association’s 2016 Bench and Bar Conference 2016
Co-Presenter, “Marketing Your Mediation Practice”,
Southern California Mediation Association-Santa Barbara Professional Development Group 2016
Co-Presenter, “Ethical Issues in Mediation”
ADR Section of the Santa Barbara County Bar Association MCLE Credit Session 2024
Trial Judge in Following Published Decisions
People v. Prock (2014) 225 Cal. App. 4th 812; 170 Cal. Rptr. 3d 620; 2014 Ca. App. LEXIS 348
People v. Galvez (2011) 195 Cal. App. 4th 1253; 126 Cal. Rptr. 3d 554; 2011 Cal. App. Lexis 647
People v. Fisher (2009) 172 Cal. App. 4th 1006; 91 Cal. Rptr. 3d 609; 2009 Cal. App. LEXIS 442
Haraguchi v. Superior Court (2008) 43 Cal. 4th 706; 182 P. 3d 579; 76 Cal. Rptr. 3d 250
People v. Thompson (2006) 38 Cal. 4th 811; 135 P. 3d 3; 43 Cal. Rptr. 3d 750
In re Cruz (2003) 104 Cal. App. 4th 1339; 129 Cal. Rptr. 2d 31; 2003 Cal. App. LEXIS 1
In re Marriage of Bryant (2001) 91 Cal. App. 4th 789; 110 Cal. Rptr. 2d 791; 2001 Cal. App.
LEXIS 645
Townsend v. Superior Court (1998) 61 Cal. App. 4th 1431; 72 Cal. Rptr. 2d 333; 1998 Cal. App.
LEXIS 183
People v. Davenport (1985) 176 Cal. App. 3rd Supp. 10; 222 Cal. Rptr. 736; 1985 Cal. App.
LEXIS 2952
Published Opinions Authored or Counsel of Record
Authored:
Keith v. Buchanan (1985) 173 Cal. App. 3rd 13; 220 Cal. Rptr. 392. Wrote published opinion for
the California Court of Appeal. The most widely used digest of California law, Summary of
California Law, by B.E. Witkin, states. inter alia, that “U.C.C. (Uniform Commercial Code Section)
2313 (regarding express warranties) was given a definitive construction” in California in the case of
Keith v. Buchanan. See Witkin, supra., 10th ed., Vol. 4., “Sales” p. 68. (See generally, Witkin,
Summary of California Law, 10th ed., Vol. 4, “Sales” Sections 57-76 at pgs. 68-84).
Other published opinions:
People v. Nottingham (1985) 172 Cal. App. 3rd 484; 221 Cal. Rptr. 1. (Murder
conviction overturned) and Baker v. Pratt (1986) 176 Cal. App. 3rd 370; 222 Cal. Rptr. 253. (Issues regarding
six consolidated lawsuits involving intertwined corporate dissolutions determined)
Counsel of Record:
Hennagin v. County of Yolo (E.D. Ca., 1979) 481 F. Supp. 923
Vaughn v. Regents of the University of California (E.D. Ca., 1981) 504 F. Supp. 1349
Driskill v. Woods (1977) 70 Cal. App. 3rd 622; 138 Cal. Rptr. 863
Jonasen v. County of Yolo (E.D. Ca., 1980) 24 E.P.D. Para. 31,364
Employment Policies and Statutes Written:
Santa Barbara County’s Personnel Policies related to Anti-Sexual Harassmentand Bias Free
Workplace. As Chair of the County Affirmative Action Commission in 1982—Authored the first
such countywide policies in the nation.
Government Code sections 74640 et. seq. Authored legislation enacted in the California
Government Code which effected consolidation of the Santa Barbara County Marshal’s Office into
the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office—1996
Honors and Awards
John T. Rickard Judicial Service Award, Santa Barbara County Bar Association
Hero for Justice Award, Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County
Influential Latino, Latino Today (Tri-Counties publication)
Judge of the Year, Southern California Mediation Association
Distinguished Alumni, Martin Luther King, Jr. School of Law (UC Davis)
President’s Judicial Award, Santa Barbara County Bar Association
Vision and Task Award, Dyslexia Awareness & Resource Center
Leadership in Public Policy Award, Santa Barbara Mental Health Association
Honorary El Presidente, Santa Barbara Old Spanish Days
Distinguished Graduate of the Year, Long Beach Unified School District
Founding Award Recipient, Santa Barbara Hispanic Achievement Council
Present and Past Community Activities
Founding Member, Latina/o Lawyers Association of Santa Barbara
Chair, Santa Barbara County Advisory Board, Casa Pacifica, Centers for Children & Families
Founding Trustee, Santa Barbara Courthouse Legacy Foundation
Board President, Santa Barbara and Ventura Colleges of Law Board Member, Old Spanish Days
Board Member, UC Davis School of Law Alumni Association
Board Member, UCSB Alumni Association
Member, Santa Barbara Hispanic Achievement Council
Founding Member, Santa Barbara American Inns of Court Member, Fighting Back Task Force
Board Member, Santa Barbara County Community Action Commission
Member and Chair, Santa Barbara County Affirmative Action Commission
Judicial Coordinator, Santa Barbara County High Schools Mock Trial Competition
Member, Advisory Board, Santa Barbara PARC Foundation (Parks & Recreation
Community Foundation)
Member, Santa Barbara New House Inc. Advisory Board
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Hon. FRANK J. OCHOA, (Ret.)
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MEDIATION and Arbitration Services
Civil case and Criminal Defense Representation
The patience to listen, the experience to resolve
Honorable Frank J. Ochoa, Retired © 2013 All Rights Reserved