Thursday, September 6, 2012
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Incoming AOC Director Names AOC Leadership Team
By a MetNews Staff Writer
The incoming administrative director of the courts has named his top executives under a restructuring plan approved by the Judicial Council last Friday, the Administrative Office of the Courts said yesterday.
Retired Shasta Superior Court Judge Steven Jahr, due to become the administrative director on Oct. 9, has chosen Jody Patel, Curt Soderlund, and Curt Child to serve as chief of staff, chief administrative officer, and chief operating officer, respectively.
Under the restructuring—which was proposed by the Judicial Council’s Executive and Planning Committee and based on recommendations of the Strategic Evaluation Committee appointed by the chief justice last year—the administrative director and the three executives serving directly under him will form the court’s Executive Office.
The new Executive Office will replace a group of 14 senior executives, effective Oct. 1.
Current Posts
Patel is currently the interim administrative director of the courts, Solderlund the interim chief deputy director, and Child the director of the Office of Government Affairs.
Jahr said in a statement:
“These new leadership positions within the AOC’s Executive Office will strengthen oversight of the agency’s diverse areas of responsibility pertaining to the Judicial Council and the courts, facilitate clearer expectations and greater consistency of practice with regard to operational and programmatic services, and improve overall service to our customers—the Judicial Council, the courts, and the public.”
He credited the three with “an exceptional depth and breadth of knowledge on the issues confronting our justice system and the AOC.”
Patel was appointed interim administrative director in February following the surprise resignation of Ronald Overholt, who said he had become a “lightning rod” for criticism of the AOC. Overholt was also serving on an interim basis, having been chosen following last year’s retirement of William Vickrey.
Prior to that appointment, Patel was the AOC’s regional administrative director. She was placed in charge of all of the regional offices last year, after having headed the Sacramento office for five years.
She was executive officer for the Sacramento Superior Court from 2001 to 2006.
Executive Experience
Soderlund also joined the AOC in 2006, after having been Patel’s deputy at the Sacramento Superior Court. His previous executive experience was with state agencies, including the Energy Commission, and the departments of General Services and of Housing and Community Development, as well as the Crime Victims and Government Compensation Board and its predecessor, the Board of Control.
Child has been the AOC’s chief lobbyist since 2007. He previously served as director of the Department of Child Support Services under Gov. Gray Davis and as principal consultant for the Assembly Committee on Human Services.
He also worked as a senior attorney for Legal Services of Northern California and the National Center for Youth Law. He is a graduate of McGeorge School of Law and was admitted to the State Bar in 1986.
Copyright 2012, Metropolitan News Company