Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald was appointed to the Central District of California by President Barack Obama in 2012.
Fitzgerald graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University and earned his law degree from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall), where he was elected to the Order of the Coif and served as Managing Editor of the Industrial Relations Law Journal. He clerked for Judge Irving R. Kaufman of the Second Circuit, served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Criminal Division, and later became a named partner at Corbin, Fitzgerald & Athey LLP in Los Angeles. He also served as Deputy Chief Counsel to the Rampart Independent Review Panel examining LAPD practices.
Education
- University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall), J.D., 1985
- Harvard University, B.A., 1981 (magna cum laude)
Career
- Law clerk, Judge Irving R. Kaufman, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, 1985–1988
- Assistant U.S. Attorney, Criminal Division, Central District of California, 1988–1991
- Associate, Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe LLP, Los Angeles, 1991–1995
- Attorney, Law Offices of Robert L. Corbin PC, Los Angeles, 1995–1998
- Named partner, Corbin, Fitzgerald & Athey LLP, Los Angeles, 1998–2012
- Deputy Chief Counsel, Rampart Independent Review Panel
- U.S. District Judge, Central District of California, 2012–present