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NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Aug. 11, 2020 – Today, the Orange County Bar Association announced the Honorable Kirk Nakamura, Presiding Judge of Orange County Superior Court, as this year’s Harmon G. Scoville Award recipient. The award will be presented during a virtual OCBA Recognition Reception in October 2020.
Established in 1990, the prestigious Scoville Award was first given to then-retiring Justice Harmon G. Scoville, the Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal, 4th District, Division 3. Since then, the OCBA has annually presented this award to a member of the Orange County legal community whose career exemplifies the highest standards of the legal profession, who is widely known as a champion of the constitutional system of justice, and who has made significant contributions to the OCBA and its community.
“We at the Orange County Bar Association are fortunate to have a Bench that is so committed to a strong relationship with the Bar. Judge Nakamura is emblematic of that relationship, working so hard – even during the many crises he has had to manage this year – to both keep the Bar informed and embrace input from the Bar’s leaders, to the benefit of all the practicing lawyers. We are grateful for his leadership,” said OCBA President Scott Garner, a partner at Umberg/Zipser based in Irvine, Calif.
Judge Nakamura was elected Presiding Judge of the Orange County Superior Court of California by fellow judges of the court, and he began his two-year term on January 1, 2019. Prior to this, he served as Assistant Presiding Judge since his election to that position in January 2016. He was appointed by Governor Gray Davis to the Orange County Superior Court bench in 2001.
Additionally, Judge Nakamura formerly served as president of the Orange County Japanese American Lawyers Association, the Orange County Asian American Bar Association, the William P. Gray/Lex Legion Inn of Court, and the California Asian Pacific American Judges Association. He was also a board member of the Orange County Bar Association and the California Judges Association.
Among his many accolades, he was awarded the Trailblazer Award from the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association and the Outstanding Service Award from the Orange County Asian American Bar Association.
Judge Nakamura received his Juris Doctor degree from Duke University School of Law in 1980 and his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California, Irvine in 1977.
About the Orange County Bar Association
Established in 1901, the Orange County Bar Association, with over 7,500 members, is one of the largest voluntary bars in California. The mission of the Orange County Bar Association is to enhance the system of justice, to support the lawyers who serve it and to assist the community served by it.
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