CA Bar #: 122666 (May 1986)
Appointed By: Pres. William J. Clinton
The Hon. Barry T. Moskowitz is a senior judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of California[1]. Moskowitz was appointed to the bench by former President Bill Clinton on December 26, 1995, after his nomination on June 30, 1995, and confirmation by the United States Senate on December 22, 1995, to a new seat established by 104 Stat. 5089[1].
Before that appointment, Moskowitz served as a United States magistrate judge for the Southern District of California from 1986 to 1995, beginning with a part-time term and moving to a full-time term in 1988[1]. He later served as chief judge of the court from 2012 until he assumed senior status on January 23, 2019[1]. During his judicial service, he helped relocate a daycare center for the children of federal employees onto federal property. The new center was later named in his honor.
In litigation arising from the 2003 California gubernatorial recall, Moskowitz struck down a state law that conditioned a voter's replacement-candidate vote on a separate yes-or-no vote on the recall question[1]. He also heard challenges to the presence of the Soledad Cross on federal property[2]. In a defamation action against Cornell University, Moskowitz dismissed the suit under California's anti-SLAPP statute[3]. In a criminal sentencing case later reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Court held that a district court could not lengthen a prison term to promote a defendant's rehabilitation[4].
Moskowitz earned a B.A. from Rutgers University in 1972[1]. At Rutgers Law School, he completed a J.D. in 1975[1]. After law school, Moskowitz clerked for Leonard I. Garth of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit from 1975 to 1976[1]. He was admitted to the State Bar of California (May 1986).
After completing his clerkship, Moskowitz joined the United States Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey as an assistant United States attorney, a role he held from 1976 to 1982[1]. In 1982, he entered private practice in Wayne, New Jersey, and remained there until 1985[1]. He then moved to San Diego and spent one year as an assistant United States attorney with the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of California[1]. His work there included asset forfeiture matters[1].
His honors have included the San Diego County Bar Association's Outstanding Jurist award in 2017[5].
Moskowitz was born in Paterson, New Jersey, on August 17, 1950[1]. In the San Diego legal community, he brought attention to limited courtroom opportunities for junior lawyers, a concern that led to a series of Bench and Bar luncheons[6]. Moskowitz also described the court as accessible on procedural questions and encouraged attorneys to call chambers on those matters[7]. In a later profile, Jinsook Ohta, who had clerked for Moskowitz before joining the same court, said his treatment of self-represented litigants and attention to detail influenced her own approach to judging[8].
[1] Wikipedia — Barry Ted Moskowitz
[2] Voice of San Diego — Another Judge's Cross to Bear
[3] Cornell News — Libel Lawsuit Against Cornell over 1983 News Item Dismissed
[4] Attorney Lombardo — Supreme Court Reverses Decision of a San Diego Federal Judge
[5] Ballotpedia — Barry Moskowitz
[6] Federal Bar Association, San Diego Chapter — December 2012 Newsletter
[7] Federal Bar Association, San Diego Chapter — Summer 2012 Newsletter
[8] Federal Bar Association, San Diego Chapter — Judicial Profile: Jinsook Ohta
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