
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kelvin D. Filer will receive the Outstanding Jurist Award from the Los Angeles County Bar Association in June.
Filer, Supervising Judge of the Compton Courthouse, will be recognized for his distinguished career on the bench and contributions to the community and practice of law. He worked two years with the State Public Defenders office before serving more than three decades as a judge.
According to the LACBA announcement, “Judge Filer is universally praised for his judicial independence, intellect, judicial temperament and integrity as well as his continued support for the youth in his community through school programs and organizations such as the Southern California Junior Cricket Academy. He has made extraordinary efforts to inspire and open doors for underprivileged and at-risk youth.”
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A native of Compton, Filer graduated from Compton High School in 1973 and enrolled in US Santa Cruz where he graduated with honors with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1977. After earning his Juris Doctorate from the University of California Berkeley (Boalt Hall) in 1980, he began practicing law as a deputy state public defender.
In this capacity, Filer argued and won a landmark case before the California Supreme Court, People v. Taylor (1982) 31 Cal.3d 488. In 1982, he opened a private law practice in his hometown and maintained a general criminal/civil practice emphasizing criminal defense work.
In July 1993, Judge Filer was selected to the judicial bench as a commissioner for the Compton Municipal Court. He later served as a Superior Court Commissioner after the courts’ unification in 2000. On August 8, 2002, Governor Gray Davis appointed him as a judge of the Superior Court in Los Angeles.
LACBA will recognized Filer’s achievement during the organization’s installation and awards dinner on Friday, June 20 at the Bonadventure Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.