Hon. Colleen K. Sterne
Judge
Superior Court
Santa Barbara County


Rate a judge
Attorney Average Rating:   2.3 - 16 rating(s)
Non-Attorney Average Rating:   1.0 - 9 rating(s)


General Rating Criteria

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

Criminal Case Rating Criteria (if applicable)

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


Civil Case Rating Criteria (if applicable)

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

General Rating Criteria

Criminal Case Rating Criteria
(if applicable)

Civil Case Rating Criteria
(if applicable)
EvaluatorIDDate*Temp.*Sch.*Indu.*Comp.*Punct.*Ab-Pr.*Ab-Tr.Flex
Criminal Defense Lawyer13100702/12/2025111  111
Criminal Defense Lawyer12939810/29/20241 111 11
Civil Litigation - Private12671705/08/20241111 111
Civil Litigation - Private12598703/25/202411111111
Civil Litigation - Private12589603/17/2024111  111
Civil Litigation - Private12567403/04/2024111  111
Civil Litigation - Private9283602/22/2021   191  
Civil Litigation - Private7618809/16/20191111 11 
Civil Litigation - Private7374508/05/20191010101099108
Civil Litigation - Private6929505/21/201911111111
Civil Litigation - Private6773104/09/2019511     
Civil Litigation - Private6622003/04/20191111 111
Civil Litigation - Private6121511/02/201811111111
Civil Litigation - Private6118311/01/201811111111
Criminal Defense Lawyer5758107/06/201881010 1010  
Civil Litigation - Private4549209/22/2016        
Category Average  2.42.42.31.94.12.31.81.6
   
ID*Ev-Cr.BailPleaInc.-Pr.Inc.-Tr.Inc.-S.
1310071  222
1293981     
126717      
125987      
125896      
125674      
92836      
76188      
73745      
69295111111
67731      
66220      
61215      
61183151101010
57581      
45492      
 1.03.01.04.34.34.3
ID*Ev-Cv.SettleInc.Average
1310071111.0
12939811 1.0
1267171111.0
1259871111.0
12589611 1.0
12567411 1.0
92836   3.7
7618811101.0
7374510 109.8
692951111.0
677311552.0
662201111.0
612151111.0
611831151.0
575819  9.5
4549215 1.0
 2.11.63.62.3

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

Non-attorney Rating
(if applicable)

EvaluatorIDDateJudgeIDOvr.AverageReadComment
Litigant11982908/06/20231536211.0Read Comment
Litigant10916107/30/202215362  Read Comment
Litigant9846909/02/20211536211.0Read Comment
Other9576306/02/20211536211.0Read Comment
Litigant8945009/21/20201536211.0Read Comment
Litigant8941909/20/202015362  Read Comment
Other8767007/01/20201536211.0Read Comment
Other8299902/08/20201536211.0Read Comment
Other7284407/19/20191536211.0Read Comment
Litigant6622203/04/20191536211.0Read Comment
Other4699101/01/20171536211.0Read Comment
Category Average   1.01.0