Kathleen Elizabeth O'Leary at a glance
- Current role
- Presiding Justice
- Court
- California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District
- Jurisdiction
- California · State
- Judicial service
- February 9, 2012–present
Kathleen Elizabeth O'Leary
Presiding Justice · California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District
Available research
Biography
Professional career
- Following law school, Justice O’Leary worked for the Orange County Public Defender’s office for five years, learning priceless lessons about the justice system that inform her work to this day.
Judicial service
- Trial Judge, Municipal Court of California, County of Orange, 1981-1986
- Judge, Superior Court of California, County of Orange, 1986-2000
- Associate Justice, California Court of Appeal, 4th District, 2000-2012
- Presiding Justice, California Court of Appeal, 4th District, 2012-present
- Justice O’Leary has been elected by the voters of the Fourth District (Imperial, Inyo, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Diego counties) in 2006, 2010, and as Presiding Justice in 2014.
- In 1999, Governor Gray Davis appointed Justice O’Leary to serve as an Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division Three.
Education
- Loyola Marymount University · BA
- Southwestern Law School · JD, 1975
Personal record
Born 1951
Courtroom rules and guidance
Audiovisual Evidence
A party offering an electronic sound or sound-and-video recording must provide the court and opposing parties a transcript and provide opposing parties a duplicate of the recording.
the party must provide to the court and to opposing parties a transcript of the electronic recording and provide opposing parties with a duplicate of the electronic recordingCalifornia Rule 2.1040, Electronic recordings presented or offered into evidence ↗
Remote Proceedings
California courts should permit remote participation in covered civil proceedings, subject to the statute, local rules, and controlling orders.
courts should permit parties to appear remotely at conferences, hearings, and proceedings in civil cases consistent with Code of Civil Procedure section 367.75California Rule 3.672, Remote proceedings ↗
Remote Participants And Witnesses
Covered civil parties and witnesses may appear remotely, and the court may conduct proceedings in whole or in part using remote technology.
that party or witness may appear remotely and the court may conduct conferences, hearings, and proceedings, in whole or in part, through the use of remote technologyCalifornia Code of Civil Procedure section 367.75 ↗
Recording And Broadcasting
Court proceedings may not be photographed, recorded, or broadcast except as Rule 1.150 permits.
Except as provided in this rule, court proceedings may not be photographed, recorded, or broadcast.California Rule 1.150, Photographing, recording, and broadcasting in court ↗
Expedited Jury Trial Presentations
In expedited jury trials, parties may use slides, electronic presentations, projections, exhibit notebooks, and other methods approved at the pretrial conference.
the parties may present summaries and may use photographs, diagrams, slides, electronic presentations, overhead projections, individual notebooks of exhibits for submission to the jurors, or other innovative methods of presentation approved at the pretrial conferenceCalifornia Rule 3.1551, Case presentation ↗
Expedited Jury Trial Pretrial Agreements
Voluntary expedited jury trial submissions must identify party agreements concerning electronic presentations and other proposed presentation methods.
Any agreements of the parties to use photographs, diagrams, slides, electronic presentations, overhead projections, notebooks of exhibits, or other methods of presenting information to the juryCalifornia Rule 3.1548, Pretrial submissions for voluntary expedited jury trials ↗
Exhibit Admission
An exhibit must be admitted by the judge before it may be used in the case.
The judge must to allow you to admit the exhibit as evidence in order for you to use it in your case.How to introduce exhibits at a trial ↗
Sources
California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District current judicial profile
Identity source · HTML · checked August 2, 2026
https://www.courtlistener.com/person/6527/kathleen-elizabeth-oleary/California Rule 2.1040, Electronic recordings presented or offered into evidence
Judge research source · HTML · checked July 26, 2026
https://courts.ca.gov/cms/rules/index/two/rule2_1040California Rule 3.672, Remote proceedings
Judge research source · HTML · checked July 26, 2026
https://courts.ca.gov/cms/rules/index/three/rule3_672California Code of Civil Procedure section 367.75
Judge research source · HTML · checked July 26, 2026
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=367.75.&lawCode=CCPCalifornia Rule 1.150, Photographing, recording, and broadcasting in court
Judge research source · HTML · checked July 26, 2026
https://courts.ca.gov/cms/rules/index/one/rule1_150California Rule 3.1551, Case presentation
Judge research source · HTML · checked July 26, 2026
https://courts.ca.gov/cms/rules/index/three/rule3_1551California Rule 3.1548, Pretrial submissions for voluntary expedited jury trials
Judge research source · HTML · checked July 26, 2026
https://courts.ca.gov/cms/rules/index/three/rule3_1548How to introduce exhibits at a trial
Judge research source · HTML · checked July 26, 2026
https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/how-introduce-exhibits-trial