An attorney who has spent her career in both private practice and public service has been appointed as San Diego’s newest federal magistrate judge.
Valerie Torres was sworn in on Dec. 8 and fills the position vacated by retiring Magistrate Judge William Gallo. As a magistrate judge, she will preside over much of the day-to-day, pre-trial movement of cases, including arraignments, guilty pleas, search warrant approvals and civil case settlement conferences.
Torres comes from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Diego, where she worked more than nine years as a civil deputy chief, representing the federal government in lawsuits.
She is a veteran litigator, including arguing at the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and this year the team she led was recognized by the U.S. Attorney’s Office as Litigation Team of the Year. She was also honored in 2020 with the John R. Neece Award, “recognizing the diligence, excellence, and integrity” in civil litigation work, according to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.
Prior to her time at the U.S Attorney’s Office, Torres worked in the San Diego office of Latham & Watkins LLP, where she spent more than 10 years as an attorney specializing in cases surrounding environmental law, harm caused by toxic substances and product liability claims.
She graduated magna cum laude from Pepperdine University School of Law in 2002 and received a bachelor’s degree in politics from Princeton University in 1999.
While district judges are nominated by the president and approved by the U.S. Senate for lifetime appointments, magistrate judges serve eight-year terms that can be renewed.
Torres was vetted by a local selection panel of both attorneys and non-attorneys and was appointed to the bench by a vote of the court’s district judges.
