"The Robing Room: CA State Judges

Hon. Margaret L. Oldendorf	See Rating Details
Judge Superior Court
Los Angeles County	See Comments

Attorney Average Rating: 7.5 - 10 rating(s) Non-Attorney Average Rating: 1.0 - 1 rating(s)	Please send me alerts on this judge E-mail Address:

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Only items marked with (*) are averaged into the displayed overall rating.

General Rating Criteria

* Temperament		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Scholarship		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Industriousness		(1=Not at all industrious,10=Highly industrious)
* Ability to Handle Complex Litigation		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Punctuality		(1=Chronically Late,10=Always on Time)
* General Ability to Handle Pre-Trial Matters		(1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
* General Ability as a Trial Judge		(1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
Flexibility In Scheduling		(1=Completely Inflexible,10=Very Flexible)

Criminal Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Evenhandedness in Criminal Litigation		(1=Demonstrates Bias,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
General Inclination Regarding Bail		(1=Pro-Defense,10=Pro-Government)
Involvement in Plea Discussions		(1=Not at all Involved, 10=Very Involved)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Pretrial Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Trial Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Sentencing Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)

Civil Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Evenhandedness in Civil Litigation		(1=Not at all Evenhanded,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
Involvement in Settlement Discussions		(1=Not at all Involved,10=Very Involved)
General Inclination		(1=Pro-defendant, 10=Pro-plaintiff)

Comments

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What others have said about Hon. Margaret L. Oldendorf

Comments

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA48666
Rating:1.0

Comments:
This Judge does not know real estate law. She overruled a demurrer to a real estate commission complaint without the RPA. How could any commission agreement be valid without the RPA? She also advised PLA of arbitration, after PLA litigated deeply. Her judicial bias was obvious. She does not even know that the "bad guys" could sue first due to her experiences.

Other

Comment #: CA39791
Rating:1.0

Comments:
I was a witness to a case that was heard later on in the day. I got to watch how cases were handled and judged for Protection Orders by Margaret L Oldendorf.
Margaret was a fill-in judge for that day since the one that normally handles PO's was off.

Margaret was the scariest thing I have ever experienced in my life and I wasn't even on trial. She should not be allowed to make decisions on people's lives. She showed incredible bias and gave PO's out every single time. There was even a case where it was proven with hard evidence the complainant lied and did a false police report and even testified they experienced no harassment, threats, or physical harm. But Margaret gave out the PO anyway which seems to be because of sexism and the complaintif's job affiliation.

[Redacted by Editor]
Scary… I was never a sympathizer for people wronged in court, but I see now… I think a lot of innocent people could have been given guilty verdicts. Honestly the Court system should review all of Margaret’s judgements and these people should be given another chance [Redacted].

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA25804
Rating:10.0

Comments:
After fifty years practicing civil law and over a hundred jury trials, I can certify that Judge Oldendorf is one of the best judges I’ve ever appeared before. Great demeanor, terrific with juries. Treats all litigants and lawyers fairly. Smart and not afraid to make a ruling.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA17750
Rating:10.0

Comments:
A great judge. Wish she was in downtown Los Angeles so that more litigants could experience what it is like to have a fair, unbiased, hardworking and knowledgeable judge preside over a civil case.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: CA17749
Rating:10.0

Comments:
One of the best Judges in California!

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA11967
Rating:10.0

Comments:
Very sharp, even-tempered. Reads all the details of the case and takes copious notes, follows every nuance of the case. She is, truly, a legal eagle, but you won't see it easily - comes across as a soft and polite lecturer. Yes, I lost the case, but I made several mistakes - it was a given that I would lose. Nevertheless, she was very helpful and I got my day in court.

Other

Comment #: CA11733
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
Totally "alt left."

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: CA8036
Rating:5.0

Comments:
Polite but that is misleading as she was pathetically pro-prosecution. Glad she moved on.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: CA7544
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
Disgusting creature. She is extremely depressed and it shows in her courtroom manner. She should retire and clean up her horse's crap. At least she would be accomplishing something.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: CA7499
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
Another "lefist Calif. Judge." Share your wealth is her belief while she probably eats cavier for breakfast. What is wrong with this state is judges such as this. Do it her way or you get zip. Stay clear of this tryanbt

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: CA4689
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
She is a miserable person in general. She knew that I had been cheated by the other side, but insisted that I take a big loss money-wise. She thought that I should get something, but not much. Not only was I ripped off by the other side, but my attorney was ripping me off as well. She thought that I should see the light and be big about it. I firmly opposed her viewpoint, and she then told me to get out of the courtroom -- just like that. She treated me as though I were an infant. She is definitely not a people person, and is ridiculous as a judge. The worst judges are within the L.A. Superior Court.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: CA2667
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
After sitting in on several matters put in front of Judge Oldendorf, I now know first handedly what it feels like to witness a Nazi slaughter. I witnessed a young man put in handcuffs for merely attempting to disqualify her for her blatantly obvious prejudice towards him.
She lied in open court numerous times and has an incredible desire to dominate and control. I found her comments to be rude and unnecessary. She advocates for the forced signing of Faretta waivers and believes this is voluntary. This woman ought to be removed from office for the safety of the community. If you doubt any of these words, I challenge you to sit in on her department for a day. She violates judicial canons and has no regard for protecting the individual's rights.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA1407
Rating:3.9

Comments:
Rating:8.0
Comments:

This judge has no knowledge of real estate litigation and relied on a treatise instead of a California Supreme Court decision,

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA1157
Rating:8.0

Comments:
While this judge gets an A+ on demeanor and preparation for hearing, she gets a D- on GUTS. Where the statute of limitations defense was stated explicitly in Plaintiff's special interrogatory responses, without qualification, condition, or objection, she still refused to grant summary judgment because she just didn't "feel good about it."

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA49
Rating:9.2

Comments:
Excellent judge. Read the papers closely and was very well prepared. Had the courage to ask hard questions and seemed to have good intuition about what was really happening in the case. Courteous to all, but not moved by flattery or BS.