JUDGE

JILL C. FANNIN
SUPERIOR COURT O F CALIFORNIA
COU NTY OF CONTRA COSTA
PROFILE
switched to plaintiffs work and unfair
business class actions. In 1998, she
moved her practice to Morison-Knox,
Holden, Melendez & Prough, where she
went back to insurance defense.
In 2000, Fannin became a mediator
Contra Costa County Superior
at JAMS, the alternative dispute resolu­
Court judge, appointed by Gov. Gray
tion center where her father was chair­
Davis, April 2003; mediator at JAMS,
man of the board at the time. The deci­
2000-2003; Morison-Knox, Holden,
sion to go that route was based on a
1\t!elendez & ?rough, 1998-2000; Farow
growing weariness of writing motions
& Bramson, 1993-1998; Bronson,
and researching cases and a desire for
Bronson & McKinn on 1989-1993; Guy
,

Kornblum & Associates, 1987-1989.
By Dennis J. Opatrny
Daily Journal Staff W riter
MARTINEZ Contra
County Superior Court
Fannin grew up in a household where
body parts were often the subject of
conversation.
Or family members might argue
over who is responsible if a burglar falls
and injures himself. ·
personal contact.
"I do Jove the analytical part of
law," the judge said. "But I wasn't hav­
ing any people contact. Then I realized
that I wasn't going to ifl kept doing any
Costa
practice area that I had done."
Judge Jill
She said the three-year mediator
stint at JAMS satisfied her cravings.
Fannin said a mediator practice is "per­
sonality-driven .... people come to a
mediator. They just don't go to JAMS."
Fannin said. "It always seemed so exit­ Each mediator must develop a clientele

ing and interesting..... Plus, 'Perry based on reputation. Retired judges,

These may seem like unusual top­
Mason' was big then." who come from public courts, have the
ics, but Fannin's father, Coleman
When her father sat on the Contra advantage through name recognition,
Fannin, a retired judge and now a pri­
Costa County bench, Fannin would she said.
vate arbitrator, steeped his daughter in
bicycle down to the Martinez court­ "But lawyers have definitely come
the law.
house and watch the proceedings. into their own in the mediation field,"
"In my family we would talk about
"It was fabulous," she recalled. she added.
what's the value of an arm," Jill Fannin
Fond memories of those court­ . As a new judge, Fannin initially
recalled, smiling at the memory of her
house visits inspired her to earn a law presided over civil matters, misde­
early years.
degree at Hastings College of the Law meanor criminal trials and preliminary
Her father remembers that particu­
in 1987 after she finished her under­ hearings in the Richmond branch of the
lar discussion a bit differently.
graduate studies at UC Berkeley. court. Then she moved to Martinez to
"We discussed the value of an arm
For someone who always wanted handle high-volume criminal arraign­
that's off, not an arm," he said in a
to be a judge, Fannin's career dream ments, preliminary hearings and
recent interview.
came true in April 2003, when Gov. Proposition 36 drug court.
Looking back, Coleman Fannin
Gray Davis, a Democrat, appointed her Last December, she asked to .be
says he could see early on that his
several years after she fi r st applied. transferred to juvenile court, an assign­
daughter had the right mindset to follow
She said she still doesn't know how ment most judges try to avoid despite its
in his footsteps.
it happened. importance.
"She was always the mediator
"I think the appointment process is "I know it's not what many covet,
between [her siblings)," he said. "That's
just one big, black box," she said. but I really wanted to see what it was
why I think she brings peace, calm and
She prepared for the bench with a like, both with delinquency and helping
fair resolutions on the matters before
legal career that began in the 1980s. She families in dependency," she said.
her."
handled insurance issues, including bad She finds her new assignment
He recalled that as a youngster, Jill
faith claims, first at San Francisco's Guy challenging and rewarding, in part
would play judge when children in her
Kornblum & Associates and later at because she faces a steep learning curve
neighborhood held a trial; her sister,
Bronson, Bronson & McKinnon. in a new area of the law.
Toni, would sometimes be the defen­
In 1993, she joined the Farrow "You see the system works .... and
dant.
Bramson firm in Walnut Creek and families get back together," the judge
"I always wanted to do it;" Jill

©Daily Journal Corporation 2006-2

 JUDGE JILL C. FANNIN, SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA
said. But not always, she added.
Sometimes Fannin has to make the
heart-wrenching decision to remove a
child from a family because of abuse or
some other dangerous situtation. Some
of those kids are adopted and others sent
to foster homes.
"It's what we do," she said.
She said the purpose of her court is
to try to reunify families that have bro­
ken up, mostly because the parents are
not doing what the court has told them
they must to retain their child.
"After a certain period of time, if
the parents don't get their act together,
then the burden changes and it becomes
what is in the best interest of the child,"
she said.
But Fannin has had to teach herself
to stay emotionally detached from the
decisions she has to make. It didn't
come easily.
"At first I kept having flashbacks
of everybody's traumatic lives," she
said.
"The hardest is when you have to
make the decision that a set of parents
intentionally hurt their child," she said.
Deputy County Counsel Noel
Plummer, who appears often in depend­
ency matters, said Fannin brings a good
temperament to bench
"She never loses her temper and
keeps her sense of humor," Plummer
said . "She's gentle with the children."
Martinez attorney Judith Lawrence
said Fannin has picked up the intricacies
of the dependency court quickly.
"She's one of those judges who,
when she needs something, she'll ask,"
said Lawrence of Willis & Lawrence.
The other part of her assignment is
dealing with juvenile delinquents, many
of whom commit serious felonies and
come to court with attitudes picked up
on the mean streets they know all too
well.
In a recent court session, a 16-year­
old with a drug habit and charged with a third infraction will hit the lawyer in the
misdemeanor firearm violation sat in
court handcuffed with legs chained.
Fannin said she was reluctant to
release him to the custody of his uncle
because of the drug habit. So she
referred him to a detention ranch in
Contra Costa County, where he could
get drug treatment.
"You can get out in four months, if
you perform well," the judge told the
youth. "If you don't perform well, you'll
have to do six months."
Fannin then congratulated the
µncle, who came to court, for his will-
2006-2
ingness to help the boy quit drugs and
escape a life that could tum to serious In the matter of minor AZ, J05-
crime. 0l885, dependency
The judge said it was unusual in Deputy County Counsel Patricia
her court for youngsters to remain hand­ Lowe
cuffed while they sit with their defense Alternate Public Defender Peggy
lawyers. Fannin said she wants the Stone
youths to have their hands free while Walnut Creek sole practitioner J.C.
talking to her. Borgman
But leg chains are standard, even Concord sole practitioner Robert
for the girls who come to court. And for Kosloff
good reason: During Fannin's first week Deputy Public Defender Sung Ae
on the job, she prepared to order a Choi
young man into custody, when he bolt­ Martinez attorney Judith Lawrence
ed. of Willis & Lawrence
"The kid just pushed back his chair
and took. off," she recalled. "He got In the matter of minor C, JOS-
about six blocks down the street until 01856, dependency
security poured out of the courthouse to Deputy County Counsel Melinda
get.him." Frey
She also spoke of an incident in Alternate Public Defender Robert
which a young man lunged across the Gendreau
bench to get at a judge, one of her col­ Richmond sole practitioner
leagues. Terrence Andrews
"It's unpredictable," she said. Deputy Public Defender Sally
"They tend to be impulsive individu­ Martin
als."
Deputy District Attorney Stacey In the matter of minor B, J05-
Grassini said Fannin has "the right 0l77 l, dependency
demeanor for the right situation" iii Deputy County Counsel Noel
delinquency court. "She's used to the Plummer
criminal part." Deputy Public Defender Leslie (
Deputy Public Defender Rob Bialik
Gendreau said Fannin has adjusted to Oakland sole practitioner David
dealing with juveniles with a sincere Washington
interest in what happens to them.
"She is more interested in the equi­ In the matter of minor UH, JOS-
ties.... the people and their problems and 02039, assault
she wants to solve them," he said. Deputy District Attorney Stacey
All the lawyers said they enjoyed Grassini
appearing before Fannin. Deputy Public Defender Jack Funk
She said she tries to keep her court­
room relaxed to reduce tension. In the matter of minor MC, J05-
But she won't tolerate tardy attor­ 0l 253, assault
neys. The first time, she hauls them into Deputy District Attorney
chambers to privately tell them "to Dominique Yancy
knock it off." The second offense gets Alternate Public Defender
an admonishment from the bench. The Elizabeth Harrigan
pocketbook, when she imposes sanc­ This profile appeared in the San
tions. Francisco Daily Journal on May 5,
Fannin is married with three chil­ 2006. It appeared in the Los Angeles
dren, including two boys, 13 and 11, Daily Journal on May 9, 2006.
and a girl, 8. Her husband, Ed Bachman,
sells industrial products.
The judge said she has no time for
hobbies.
"I spend almost all my time doing
, my kids' activities, from sports to piano
to whatever is going on," she said.
Here are some of Judge Fannin's
recent cases and lawyers involved.
©Daily Journal. Corporation
 JUDGE JILL C. FANNIN, SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA

BIOGRAPHY
CURRENT ASSIGNMENT

Court: Superior Court of California

County of Contra Costa
Title: Judge
Dates: 2003 to Present
Status: A ppointed
Appoi nted by: Governor Gray Davis
Date: April 1, 2003

EDUCATION

Law School: Hastings College of the

Law
Location: San Francisco, CA
Date: 1987
Degree: J.D.

College: University of California -

Berkeley
Location: Berkeley, CA
Degree: B.A.

PRACTICE HISTORY

JAMS - Mediator
From: 2000 to 2003

Morison-Knox, Holden, Melendez &

Prough
From: 1998 to 2000

Farow & Bramson

From: 1993 to 1998

Bronson, Bronson & McKinnon

From: 1989 to 1993

Gut Kornblum & Associates

From: 1987 to 1989

BARS AND RELATED

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

Admitted to California State Bar,

1987

PERSONAL HISTORY

Sex:F
Spouse: Ed Bachman
Children: Two boys and one girl
Recreation: Doing her kids' activities
(sports, piano, etc.)

©Daily Journal Corporation 2006-2