Mendocino Superior Court Bench Elects New Leadership

The Mendocino Superior Court judges have elected Judge Jeanine Nadel as the new Presiding  Judge and Judge Keith Faulder as the new Assistant Presiding Judge for the two-year leadership cycle beginning January 1, 2022.  

Judge Nadel was appointed to the bench in 2012 and has presided in criminal, civil, probate and family law cases during her tenure. In recent years, she has served in civil and probate assignments, as well as presiding over Adult Drug Court for the last five years. Judge Nadel has also presided over the Civil Grand Jury since 2012. Prior to joining the bench, Judge Nadel served as a deputy public defender but soon moved to the Office of County Counsel and ultimately was appointed County Counsel of Mendocino. She was instrumental in working through myriad intergovernmental issues that arose when new state laws required that the Court become its own employer and receive its funding from the State of California instead of the  County. 

Judge Faulder was elected to the bench in 2016 and has served primarily in criminal misdemeanor and felony assignments. He has a strong legal background in criminal law, having served in both the district attorney’s and public defender’s offices from 1998 to 2007. He was then in private practice, handling criminal, juvenile, civil and family law matters until he was elected to the bench. 

Presiding Judge Ann Moorman, who has served in this capacity at the Court for four years and is currently serving her second three-year term on the Judicial Council of California, states, “I am gratified to have well-respected, community-focused leadership ready to take the helm in  January. These judges will do an outstanding job in furthering the mission of the Court to  provide fair and equal access to justice for Mendocino County residents.”