Stephanie S. Christensen, a former federal prosecutor, was officially sworn in as a U.S. magistrate judge in federal court in Los Angeles on Wednesday. She succeeds John E. McDermott in this role after serving for 15 years in various positions within the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.
In 2022, Christensen took on the role of acting U.S. attorney, overseeing a team of nearly 600 staff members and managing all trial and appellate litigation in the Civil, Tax, National Security, and Criminal Divisions of the office. Prior to that, from 2018 onwards, she held executive leadership positions such as first assistant U.S. attorney, executive assistant U.S. attorney, and special counsel to the U.S. attorney.
One of Christensen’s notable accomplishments was her involvement in approving major settlements across a wide range of federal cases, including constitutional torts, medical malpractice, employment disputes, tax matters, class actions, fraud cases, civil rights issues, social security claims, bankruptcy proceedings, criminal cases, and national security matters.
In her earlier years, Christensen led the Cyber and Intellectual Property Crimes Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, focusing on crimes related to cyber-attacks that posed threats to national security, as well as cases involving trademark and copyright infringement, trade secret theft, and economic espionage.
Aside from her professional endeavors, Christensen has also made time for pro bono work, and she recently played a key role in launching a pro bono program specifically for federal executive branch attorneys based in Los Angeles.
In 2021, Christensen was temporarily appointed as a judge for the Superior Court in Los Angeles County. In this capacity, with the consent of the parties involved, she presided over small claims trials, unlawful detainer proceedings, and conducted settlement conferences.
Additionally, Judge Christensen serves as an adjunct professor at Loyola Law School, where she imparts her knowledge in a course on Cyber and Intellectual Property Crimes.
Prior to joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Christensen worked as an associate at two law firms, where she primarily handled civil disputes and provided defense for indigent individuals facing federal charges.
With Christensen now in the position, the Central District of California has a total of 24 full-time and one part-time magistrate judges. This district encompasses Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo counties, serving a population of over 19.3 million people, which accounts for nearly half of the state’s population.
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