Biography

The Hon. Richard H. Kirschner is a judge for the Los Angeles County Superior Court in California. He was appointed to the bench in 2001 by former governor Gray Davis. He filled the vacancy created by the retirement of the Hon. William J. McVittie (Ret.).

Judge Kirschner graduated with his B.A. in history from the University of California, Los Angeles. He went on to earn his J.D. from UCLA School of Law.

After law school, Kirschner became an assistant U.S. Attorney for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles. During his time with the Department of Justice, Kirschner also served as a special prosecutor for the U.S. Attorney's Offices in Washington, D.C. and Miami, Florida.

Kirschner would leave the public sector to become a sole practitioner. His area of practice included white-collar criminal defense of cases involving tax fraud, securities violations, and money laundering.

He also served as deputy general counsel for the Rampart Independent Review Panel, a panel initiated by the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners in the wake of the Rampart police corruption scandal.

During his time on the bench, Judge Kirschner has served as a supervising judge in the Northwest District starting in 2008. He has also presided over the felony court.

Judge Kirschner has served as a judge for the Teen Court program at Van Nuys High School. He has also taught evidence, trial tactics, and white-collar crime as an adjunct professor at Loyola Law School.

His memberships have included the past-president of the Federal Bar Association's Los Angeles chapter and the Federal Indigent Defense Panel.

In 2014, Judge Kirschner received the San Fernando Valley Bar Association's Judge of the Year Award.

A native of Los Angeles, Judge Kirschner enjoys traveling and cycling. He is also an avid runner, having competed in numerous marathons.