Honorable Belinda A. Handy

Commissioner Handy was appointed by the Supreme Court as a CJEO member in 2017. She was elected as a commissioner by the Superior Court of Riverside County in 2016. Commissioner Handy’s assignments have included family law, domestic violence, civil harassment, AB 1058/child support, adoptions, traffic, and small claims cases. Prior to the bench, she served as a public defender and practiced civil and criminal law in Los Angeles and surrounding counties.

Commissioner Handy has made numerous judicial ethics presentations at New Judge Orientation and is a Qualifying Ethics instructor for the Center for Judicial Education and Resources. She serves as outreach co-chair for her court’s Committee to Eliminate Bias and Promote Equal Justice.

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Did You Know?

Appeals heard by trial judges in Superior Court Appellate Divisions are governed by the statutory disqualification and disclosure rules for superior court judges rather than by the rules governing appellate justices. (Housing Authority of Monterey County v. Jones (2005) 130 Cal.App.4th 1029, 1040, ftn. 6; Rothman, et al., Cal. Judicial Conduct Handbook (4th ed. 2017) § 7:63, pp. 487-488¸§7:73, p. 496, § 7:90, pp. 502-503].

But Did You Also Know…?

While the rules for appellate disqualification and disclosure governing appellate justices do not apply to trial judges serving in Superior Court Appellate Divisions, they do apply to trial judges serving on assignment as a pro tem appellate justice at a court of appeal. (CJEO Oral Advice Summary 2018-025, Disqualification and Disclosure Duties of a Trial Judge Assigned as an Appellate Justice, p. 2 [disqualification and disclosure rules apply based on the type of proceeding rather than on the judicial officer’s formal title or status].) Superior court rules apply to superior court assignments in the appellate division of a trial court, which are superior court proceedings, while appellate rules apply to superior court judges assigned to hear appellate proceedings in a court of appeal.