Judge Michael A. Leversen: Professional Background and Legal Expertise

The Hon. Michael A. Leversen is a judge for the Superior Court of Orange County in California. He was appointed by former governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on December 17, 2010, filling a vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Carolyn Kirkwood.

Leversen earned a B.A. from California State University, Fullerton in 1970. He then received a J.D. from the University of San Diego in 1973.

Leversen began his legal career as a deputy public defender in the Office of the Public Defender of Orange County in 1973. Three years later, he became the sole practitioner in his own private practice, where he worked as a private defense attorney until 1980. He spent the next two years as an associate with Giles, Stewart, and Barnett, eventually becoming a partner at Hobson and Leversen in 1982. Then, in 1984, he returned to his own private practice.

Leversen was a partner at Leversen and Anthony from 1988 to 1994, when he joined the Office of the District Attorney of Orange County. His time as a deputy district attorney was brief, as he was soon appointed court commissioner for the Municipal Court of Orange County in 1995. He became court commissioner for the Superior Court in 1998 upon the majority vote of the judges in the county to convert Municipal Courts to Superior Courts.

Leversen was born in Illinois in 1947. He was a resident of Anaheim, California at the time of his appointment to the bench.

He is married with three children, and he self-identifies as Catholic. He enjoys reading, golfing, and surfing in his free time.

Leversen is registered as a Republican.