There is one vacancy on the court, created when Judge Stephen S. Trott took senior status Dec. 31, 2004.

Otis D. Wright II was confirmed on March 16 and George H. Wu on March 27 as the court's newest judges. Wright was nominated Sept. 5 of last year to succeed Judge Gary Taylor, who took senior status Dec. 8, 2004 and retired to become a private judge with JAMS on June 30, 2005. Wu was nominated to the court the same day as Wright, in anticipation of Judge Ronald S.W. Lew taking senior status, which he did on September 19.

One vacancy remains to be filled.

Orange Superior Court Judge James E. Rogan, a former congressman and Commerce Department official, was nominated Nov. 15 to succeed Judge Nora Manella, who resigned to become a justice of this district's Court of Appeal May 22.
New Magistrate Judge Alicia G. Rosenberg was sworn in on March 16.

Magistrate Judges Carolyn Turchin and Jeffrey W. Johnson began new terms March 23.

There are no vacancies.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elena J. Duarte and Samantha Jessner and civil practitioner James A. Steele were named to the court March 16. Duarte succeeds Judge Richard Van Dusen, who retired Jan. 15 and died March 9; Jessner fills the seat of Judge Chris Conway, who retired Feb. 2, and Steele, who took the oath of office Wednesday, will succeed Judge Valerie Baker Fairbank, who was named to the U.S. District Court.

Jessner will take up her first permanent assignment April 25 in Downey.

Judges Judson Morris Jr. and David M. Schacter retired Feb. 20. Judges Philip Gutierrez recently joined the federal bench, and judges George Wu and Otis Wright will do so shortly.

Judge Victor H. Person is retiring May 1 to become a private judge with Alternative Resolution Centers. Judge Bernard Kamins is retiring May 15.

Among those whose names have gone to the State Bar Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation as possible appointees to the court are Assistant U.S. Attorney David P. Vaughn, criminal defense specialist Steven Cron of Santa Monica; Los Angeles Deputy City Attorneys Richard Kraft and Edward J. Perez; state Deputy Attorney General E. Eugene Varanini IV; Deputy District Attorneys Ricardo Ocampo, David Gelfound and Laura Louise Laesecke; Commissioners Mitchell Beckloff, Victor Greenberg, Amy Pellman, Maren Nelson, Dennis Mulcahy, Harvey Silberman, Graciela Freixes, Ronald Rose, Marilyn Kading Martinez, Melissa Widdifield, Mary Lou Katz and Loren DiFrank; Referee Steven Berman; U.S. District Court attorney Amy L. Lew; Irvine attorney Raymond Earl Brown; Deputy Federal Public Defender Angel Navarro; Deputy Alternate Public Defender Jerome J. Haig; Los Angeles attorneys John L. Carlton, Adrienne Krikorian, Mark A. Borenstein, Eulanda Matthews and Lawrence P. Brennan Jr.; Century City attorney Howard S. Fredman, and Westlake Village attorney Michael Nebenzahl.

Commissioners Martin L. Goestch and James Copelan are on long-term medical leave.

The following bills of interest to the legal community were introduced in March:

•AB 104, by Assemblyman Jose Solorio, D-Anaheim, which would require the Department of Justice and local law enforcement agencies to supply criminal history information to city attorneys for the purpose of assisting them in obtaining injunctions against gang activity. The bill was amended March 22 and approved by a 16-0 vote of the Appropriations Committee March 28.

•AB 159 , by Assemblyman David Jones, D-Sacramento, which, as amended, would create 50 new superior court judgeships and an unspecified number of Court of Appeal judgeships, subject to appropriations, and convert a maximum of 162 commissioner and referee positions into judgeships over time. The bill was amended March 22.

•AB 160, by Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, D-Mountain View, which would express legislative intent to establish a Sentencing Commission to develop a new sentencing structure for criminal courts. The bill was approved on a 5-2 vote by the Committee on Public Safety March 27.

•AB 163 , by Assemblyman Tony Mendoza, D-Norwalk, which would classify Los Angeles Superior Court law clerks as permanent employees after 180 days of employment. A similar bill was vetoed last session by the governor. A March 28 amendment stripped the bill of its original content and replaced it with unrelated text.

•AB 171, by Assemblyman Jim Beall, D-San Jose, which, as amended, would create an expanded Loan Assumption Program for public interest lawyers to replace the Public Interest Attorney Loan Repayment Program, under which the state makes 3,000 grants each year to assist lawyers with repayment of their student loans. The current program is limited to attorneys who work for a prosecutor's office, child support agency, or public defender's office; the expanded program would add those working for a legal services agency or a county counsel's office. The bill was amended March 22 approved by a 5-2 vote of the Committee on Higher Education March 27.

•AB 289, by Assemblyman Todd Spitzer, R-Orange, which would allow a judge, when imposing sentence, to grant a protective order, valid for up to 10 years, barring a defendant from harassing the victims of the crime or their families. The bill was approved by a 7-0 vote of the Committee on Public Safety March 27.

•AB 357, by Mendoza, which would allow candidates to use donated funds, not subject to campaign contribution limits, to pay attorney fees for recounts and related litigation. The bill was approved by the Committee on Elections and Reapportionment March 27 by a vote of 7-0.

•AB 360, by Assemblyman Wilmer Carter, D-Rialto, which would make changes relating to the juvenile justice system. The bill was referred to the Committee on Public Safety March 1. A hearing scheduled for March 27 was cancelled at the request of the author.

•AB 367, by Assemblyman Kevin De Leon, D-Los Angeles, which would require the Judicial Council to create a task force to study the collection of court-ordered fines, fees, costs, and penalties, including public defender costs and jail booking fees. A hearing scheduled in the Judiciary Committee for March 27 was postponed to April 10.

•AB 403, by Assemblyman Van Tran, R-Costa Mesa, which would specify that an attorney cannot claim attorney-client privilege where the privilege has been waived by the holder, or by a person authorized by the holder to waive the privilege, and would provide for the appointment of a new personal representative for an estate if the previous personal representative was discharged and disclosure is sought of a communication deemed privileged in the absence of a waiver by a personal representative. A hearing scheduled in the Judiciary Committee for March 27 was postponed to April 10.

•AB 406, by Assemblywoman Cathleen Galgiani, D-Stockton, which would require the state to reimburse all of Merced County's costs for the prosecution of Cuitlahuac Tahua Rivera, a reputed gang member charged with the murder of a Merced police officer. The bill was approved by the Committee on Local Government March 28.

•AB 475, by Assemblyman Bill Emmerson, R-Rancho Cucamonga, which would give the arresting agency the right to notice and to present evidence at the hearing on a motion to destroy an arrest record. The bill was referred to the Committee on Public Safety March 22.

•AB 476, by Assemblywoman Bonnie Garcia, R-Cathedral City, which would declare an intent to enact legislation relating to the issue of criminal cases being given precedence over civil matters and proceedings. The bill was introduced Feb. 16.

•AB 481, by Tran, which would allow a landlord suing in unlawful detainer to seek a deposit of prospective rent. The bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee March 1 and is scheduled to be heard April 10.

•AB 500, by Assemblyman Ted Lieu, D-Torrance, which would establish procedures by which attorneys could appear by telephone or teleconference at any proceeding at which witnesses are not expected to testify. The bill was approved by unanimous vote of the Judiciary Committee March 27.

•AB 692, by Assemblyman Gene Mullin, D-South San Francisco, which would require an Internet lawyer referral service that refers clients to California lawyers to register with the State Bar. The bill was assigned to the Judiciary Committee March 8 and is to be heard April 10.

•AB 737, by Assemblyman Rick Keene, R-Chico, which would increase the small claims jurisdictional limit for suits by corporations from $5,000 to $7,500, the same as for individuals, and would allow both individuals and corporations to file an unlimited number of claims of up to $5,000, plus two claims per year over that amount. The bill was assigned to the Judiciary Committee March 8 and is to be heard April 10.

•AB 859, by Assemblyman George Plescia, R-San Diego, which would permit substituted service at a defendant's residence between the hours of 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. The bill was assigned to the Judiciary Committee March 8 and is to be heard April 10.

•AB 860, by Assemblywoman Mary Salas, D-Chula Vista, which would eliminate the right to trial by jury on prior-conviction allegations in criminal cases. The bill was referred to the Committee on Public Safety March 8.

•AB 1043, by Assemblywoman Sandre Swanson, D-Oakland, which would make void and unenforceable as against public policy any provision in an employment contract that requires an employee, as a condition of obtaining or continuing employment, to use a forum other than California, or to agree to a choice of law other than California law, in any dispute with an employer regarding employment-related issues that arise in California. The bill was referred to the committees on Labor and Employment and on the Judiciary March 15 and is scheduled for hearing in the Committee on Labor and Employment April 18.

•AB 1115, by Assemblywoman Sharon Runner, R-Lancaster, which would permit a rape prosecution to be initiated up to one year from the date that the perpetrator's identity is established by a DNA test. The bill was referred to the Committee on Public Safety March 15.

•AB 1126, by Assemblyman Mike Eng, D-El Monte, which would expedite discovery in unlawful detainer cases. The bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee March 15 and is scheduled to be heard April 10.

•AB 1133, by Assemblyman Mervyn Dymally, D-Compton, which would provide that in "Three Strikes" cases, a third conviction that is not for a serious or violent felony would-with certain exceptions such as drug, weapons, and sex offenses- be treated as a second strike. The bill is set for hearing in the Public Safety Committee April 10.

•AB 1158, by Assemblyman John Benoit, R-Riverside, which, as amended, would provide for videoconferencing so that sick or infirm witnesses may testify at conditional examinations of witnesses in criminal cases. The bill was referred to the Committee on Public Safety March 15 and is scheduled for hearing April 10.

•AB 1210, by Assemblywoman Shirley Horton, R-Lemon Grove, which, as amended March 28, would amend the special provisions for admission of hearsay evidence in a prosecution under the Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention Act to delete the requirement that a declarant have died of other than natural causes.

•AB 1211, by Assemblyman Curren Price Jr., D-Inglewood, which would clarify responsibility for the payment of deposition costs in civil actions. The bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee March 15 and is to be heard April 10.

•AB 1248, by Evans, which would make various changes with regard to court fees and funding. The bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee March 15 and is to be heard April 10.

•AB 1264, by Eng, which would prohibit courts from requiring, as part of local "fast-track" rules, that a summons and complaint be served in less than 90 days. The bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee March 15 and is to be heard April 10.

•AB 1340, by Assemblyman Dave Jones, D-Sacramento, which would place on the November 2008 general election ballot a $2 billion bond issue relative to the acquisition, design, construction, and renovation of court facilities. The bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee March 22.

•AB 1549, by Assemblyman Greg Aghazarian, R-Stockton, which would impose a 10-year statute of repose in products liability cases. The bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee March 22.

•AB 1557, by Assemblyman Michael Feuer, which would fix the number of peremptory challenge at six per side in all misdemeanor cases. Current law allows 10 peremptory challenges for side in trials for offenses punishable by more than 90 days in jail. The bill was referred to the committees on Public Safety and the Judiciary on March 22.

•SB 40, by Sen. Gloria Romero, D-Los Angeles, which, as amended, would respond to the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Cunningham v. California by granting judges discretion to impose the lower, middle, or upper prison term in all felony cases. The bill, which passed the Senate as an urgency measure on Feb. 13 by a vote of 36-1, was approved by the Assembly Committee on Public Safety March 13 by a vote of 5-2, amended in the Assembly March 15, approved by the Appropriations Committee March 22 by a vote of 14-1, and approved by the Assembly March 26 by a vote of 63-4. The Senate defeated the bill's urgency clause March 28 on a vote of 23-13, four short of the required two-thirds majority, but a motion to reconsider that vote is pending.

•SB 110, by Romero, which, as amended, would establish a 20-member sentencing commission chaired by the chief justice, with power to determine the sentences for infractions and crimes, subject to rejection by a two-thirds majority vote of the Legislature. The bill was amended in the Senate March 13 and is set for hearing in the Public Safety Committee April 10.

•SB 256, by Sen. Elaine Alquist, D-San Jose, which would add a number of sex crimes to the list of offenses for which there is no statute of limitations. The bill was set for hearing in the Committee on Public Safety March 27, but the hearing was postponed at the author's request.

•SB 353, by Kuehl, would allow a court, when issuing a domestic violence restraining order, to determine the right to custody of household pets. The bill was approved by a 3-1 vote of the Judiciary Committee.

•SB 559, by Sen. Christine Kehoe, D-San Diego, which would protect property from full value reassessment due to the death of the surviving owner's domestic partner prior to 2006. Such protection already exists where the partner died on or after Jan. 1, 2006. The bill was referred to the Committee on Revenue and Taxation March 8 and is scheduled for hearing April 11.