Sacramento County judge earns Gov. Newsom’s nomination for state appellate court seat

A Sacramento County judge has been nominated by Gov. Gavin Newsom to serve as an associate justice for California’s 3rd District Court of Appeal.

Judge Shama Hakim Mesiwala, 48, of Yolo County, was one of 16 judicial appointments announced Friday by the governor’s office, including judges for superior courts in Alameda, Contra Costa, Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco and San Mateo counties.

Mesiwala is a registered Democrat, Newsom’s office stated in the announcement.

The 3rd Appellate District, headquartered in Sacramento, covers the counties of Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Mono, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Yolo and Yuba.

It is one of six California appellate districts, divided geographically around the state. Most cases before the Courts of Appeal involve the review of a superior court decision, according to the Judicial Council of California.

Mesiwala has served as a judge at the Sacramento County Superior Court since 2017, according to the governor’s office. She was a judicial attorney at the 3rd District court from 2004 to 2017; served as an attorney with the Central California Appellate Program from 1999 to 2004; and was a federal public defender in 1999.

She has been an adjunct professor at UC Davis’ School of Law since 2013, where she also earned her law degree.

This position requires confirmation by the Commission on Judicial Appointments, the governor’s office noted. If confirmed, she will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice Coleman A. Blease.

The compensation for this position is $264,542, according to Newsom’s announcement.

This story was originally published December 24, 2022 at 11:18 AM.