People who search for julia c kelety wikipedia want fast and true facts about a California judge. This article tells you who she is, where she studied, how she built her career, and what is happening with her seat on the court right now. Every fact comes from court, government, and school pages, so you can read with trust.
Who Is Julia C Kelety and Why Does She Matter?
Julia C. Kelety, whose full name is Julia Craig Kelety, is an associate justice of the California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division One. This court sits in San Diego. She joined it in 2023 after twenty years as a trial judge in the San Diego County Superior Court.
An appeals court is not like a regular courtroom. There is no jury and no witness stand. Instead, a small group of justices reads the record from the lower court, hears the lawyers talk, and decides if the law was used the right way. When an appeals court rules, its words can change how a law works for many people, not only for the two sides in one case.
Quick Fact: Her career has covered four jobs in the law: law firm lawyer, federal prosecutor, trial judge, and appeals justice.
Julia C Kelety Current Status as of October 20, 2026
As of today, October 20, 2026, Justice Kelety serves as an associate justice on the Fourth Appellate District, Division One, in San Diego. I found no news of her leaving the court or changing jobs.
She also has a second public duty. Effective March 1, 2025, the California Supreme Court named her to the Commission on Judicial Performance. This group looks into complaints that a judge broke the rules or cannot do the job. It has eleven members, and she holds the seat set aside for a justice from a court of appeal. She took the place of Justice William S. Dato, who was finishing his second term.
Important Date: November 3, 2026. Julia Craig Kelety is listed on the California ballot for a retention vote for her seat on the Court of Appeal. A retention vote is nonpartisan. Voters are asked if the justice should keep the job, and they pick yes or no. No other person runs against her.
Her path to this seat started in January 2023. Governor Gavin Newsom picked her for the court, and the Commission on Judicial Appointments voted to confirm her without a single no vote on April 7, 2023. She filled the opening made when Justice Patricia Guerrero moved up to the California Supreme Court.
What to Know About Julia C Kelety
The sections below cover the facts people ask about most. Where a detail has not been shared in any public record, this article says so plainly rather than guess.
Early Life and Family Background
Justice Kelety grew up in Tempe, Arizona. That is the main fact she has shared about her early years. A speaker page for a 2021 talk she gave in California states this. No public record names her brothers or sisters, so this article does not add any.
Career
Her work history is long and it is well recorded. The table below shows the steps in order.
| Years | Role |
|---|---|
| 1985 to 1986 | Law clerk to Judge Mary M. Schroeder, U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit |
| 1986 to 1990 | Associate at the law firm Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher |
| 1990 to 1997 | Assistant U.S. Attorney, Southern District of California |
| 1991 to 1992 | Adjunct professor at the University of San Diego School of Law |
| 1997 to 2003 | Partner and associate at Wiggins and Kelety LLP |
| 2003 to 2023 | Judge, San Diego County Superior Court |
| 2023 to now | Associate Justice, California Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Division One |
As a federal prosecutor she won the Director’s Award from the U.S. Department of Justice. On the Superior Court she handled probate cases, which deal with wills and the property of people who have died, and juvenile dependency cases, which deal with the safety of children. She also served as Presiding Judge of the court’s Appellate Division, which reviews decisions from lower trial matters.
Age
The Governor’s office listed her as 62 years old when it announced her nomination in January 2023. That means she is 65 or 66 today. Her exact birth date is not printed in the official sources I checked, so this article does not give one.
Religion
Justice Kelety has not shared her religion in any public record found for this article.
Wife/Husband
No official biography, court page, or news report from a trusted source names a husband or describes her marriage. Because of that, this article does not name anyone.
Net Worth
There is no trusted report of her net worth. Websites that print a dollar figure are only guessing. As a justice she is paid by the State of California.
Warning: Be careful with any page that lists a net worth, a spouse, or a birthday for her without naming a source. These pages often copy each other and repeat errors.
Parents
The names of her mother and father have not been shared in public court, school, or government pages. This article leaves them out to respect family privacy.
Height
Her height is not listed in any official source. This article will not guess.
Education
Her school record is strong and easy to check.
- She earned her bachelor of arts degree from the University of Arizona in 1982.
- She earned her law degree from Cornell Law School in 1985, and she graduated magna cum laude, which means with high honors.
- She was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and the Order of the Coif, two honors given for top grades.
- She worked on the Cornell Law Review as an associate from 1983 to 1984 and as an articles editor from 1984 to 1985.
- She wrote a student note on the Presidential Polygraph Order, printed in volume 69 of the Cornell Law Review in 1984.
She was admitted to the bar in Arizona in 1985 and in California in 1990.
State of Origin
Her home state is Arizona, as she grew up in Tempe. She has spent most of her working life in San Diego, California.
Social Media Links
I did not find a verified personal social media account for Justice Kelety. Fake accounts using a judge’s name can exist. For safe and real information, use these official pages:
- News and announcements from the Fourth District Court of Appeal
- California Supreme Court news release on the Commission on Judicial Performance
- Governor’s office announcement of her nomination
Frequently Asked Questions About Julia C Kelety
Who is Julia C Kelety?
Julia C Kelety, also named Julia Craig Kelety, is an associate justice of the California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division One, in San Diego. She was a federal prosecutor and a trial judge before she joined the appeals court in 2023.
How old is Julia C Kelety?
She was 62 when the Governor’s office announced her nomination in January 2023, so she is about 65 or 66 now. Her exact birth date has not been published in official records.
What court does Julia Kelety serve on?
She serves on the Fourth Appellate District, Division One, of the California Court of Appeal. This court is based in San Diego. She is also a member of the state’s Commission on Judicial Performance.
Is there a Wikipedia page for Julia C Kelety?
Many readers add the word Wikipedia when they search her name. The most reliable facts about her sit on official court and government pages, and this article is built from those pages.
Where did Julia Kelety go to school?
She earned a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Arizona in 1982 and a law degree from Cornell Law School in 1985, where she graduated magna cum laude.
When was Julia Kelety confirmed to the Court of Appeal?
The Commission on Judicial Appointments voted to confirm her on April 7, 2023. Governor Gavin Newsom had picked her earlier that year.
Is Julia Kelety on the ballot in 2026?
Yes. She is listed for a nonpartisan retention vote on November 3, 2026. Voters decide yes or no on whether she keeps her seat. Check your own sample ballot for the exact wording where you live.
What is Julia Kelety’s net worth?
No trusted source reports a net worth for her. Any exact figure you see online is a guess, so treat it with care.
Final Word
Julia C Kelety is a judge with a long and well recorded career. She studied at the University of Arizona and Cornell Law School, worked for a federal appeals judge, spent years as a federal prosecutor, ran her own law practice, and then served twenty years as a trial judge in San Diego. In 2023 she moved up to the Court of Appeal, where she serves today.
For readers who typed julia c kelety wikipedia into a search bar, the key points are simple. She is a sitting appeals justice, she holds a seat on the state’s judicial discipline commission, and her seat is up for a retention vote on November 3, 2026. Her personal life, including her marriage, parents, religion, and wealth, is private, and no honest source gives those details.
Disclaimer: This article is for general information only. It uses public records and news from official sources and was checked as of October 20, 2026. Facts can change, and no part of this article is legal advice or voting advice.
