Nathan R. ScottIncumbent

Candidate for Court of Appeal Justice, California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division 3, Seat 2

Nathan R. Scott is an Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal. He sits on the Fourth Appellate District, Division Three, in Santa Ana. He earned a B.A. from UCLA. He earned a J.D. from Harvard Law School. At Harvard he edited the Harvard Latino Law Review. He also interned in Boston. That was in the Major Crimes Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office. He practiced as an associate at Kirkland & Ellis LLP. That was from 1999 to 2003. He then practiced at Cox, Castle & Nicholson LLP. That was from 2003 to 2004. From 2005 to 2012 he was an appellate court attorney. He later became senior appellate court attorney. He worked at the Fourth District Court of Appeal, the court he now sits on. Governor Jerry Brown appointed him to the Orange County Superior Court. That was on November 21, 2012, filling Judge Michael J. Naughton's vacancy. In twelve years as a trial judge, he spent about nine years on the civil panel. He spent three years on the family law panel. He was named Judge of the Year by three groups. They were the Orange County chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates, the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association, and the Orange County Hispanic Bar Association. Governor Gavin Newsom nominated him to the Court of Appeal. That was on November 21, 2024, to succeed Justice William W. Bedsworth. He was confirmed and took the oath of office. That was on February 14, 2025. He was appointed since the last general election. So Scott appears on the November 3, 2026 ballot. It is a nonpartisan yes/no retention vote. No opponent runs. A majority 'yes' vote retains him.

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