Judges Stanford E. Reichert and Barry L. Plotkin will be honored at the 11th Annual Judicial Officer Awards Ceremony of the Western San Bernardino County Bar Association March 5, 2020 at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Ontario.
Judge Reichert is the recipient of the Judicial Officer of the Year Award. A graduate of the University of Utah and Columbia Law School, he served as a civil trial lawyer for 20 years before taking the bench. For 10 of those years, he ran his own law firm, eventually becoming a trial court judicial attorney for the San Bernardino Superior Court in Rancho Cucamonga. His current assignment is in probate, conservatorships, and guardianships. He adjudicates the Chino Valley Watermaster, which determines water rights for San Bernardino residents. Judge Reichert’s career has seen significant notoriety. In 2001, the Supreme Court appointed him to be one of five State Bar Court trial judges. In 2002, the Los Angeles Superior Court judges elected him to be a court commissioner. In 2005, Governor Schwarzenegger appointed him to the San Bernardino Superior Court where he served the community honorably, handling serious criminal cases including murder, gang violence, and child abuse. In 2018, the Legal Aid Society of San Bernardino County honored his work with the Access to Justice Award. Judge Reichert has taught extensively for California Judicial Education and Research in many areas including probate, unlawful detainers, and small claims. He has also been a consultant for the California Judges Benchbook Small Claims and Consumer Law
Judge Plotkin will receive the Judicial Lifetime Achievement Award. A graduate of UCLA the U.C. Berkeley School of Law, Judge Plotkin started his career at the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. In 1985 he became a partner of Andrews, Youngquist & Hummel where he worked for fourteen years, and was a sole practitioner for four years after that. In 1989, Judge Plotkin was appointed to the San Bernardino Superior Court, and later assigned to the Central and Rancho Cucamonga district. During the 1990s, Judge Plotkin was also the Supervising Judge for the Appellate Division followed by four tears as the Supervising Judge of the Civil Division. Judge Plotkin retired in December of 2010. However, he continues to serve in the Assigned Judges Program.
Will Wooten, President of the Western San Bernardino County Bar Association, remarks that “Judge Reichert and Judge Plotkin are exemplary award recipients because of the high standards of conduct, integrity and professionalism they always exhibit inside the courtroom towards attorneys, court staff and the public”. As a Deputy District Attorney, Wooten was assigned as a calendar deputy at various times in the past
for both Judge Plotkin and Judge Reichert’s courtrooms. Wooten says, “I had the opportunity to witness firsthand the honor and dignity that both Judge Plotkin and Judge Reichert bring to the bench. Working with these judges on a daily basis was rewarding because I knew that the lawyers and parties would be treated with dignity and respect.” Wooten concluded that, “the Officers, Directors and members of the WSBCBA look forward to honoring these judges’ achievements on March 5th.”
This ticketed event is open to the public by contacting the Western San Bernardino County Bar Association offices at (909) 483-0548 or emailing mail@wsbcba.org.