"The Robing Room: CA State Judges

Hon. David Sotelo	See Rating Details
Judge Superior Court
Los Angeles County	See Comments

Attorney Average Rating: 2.8 - 13 rating(s) Non-Attorney Average Rating: 2.0 - 5 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. David Sotelo

Comments

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: CA48754
Rating:2.0

Comments:
Ignores facts completely, likely because he doesn't understand/ listen to them anyway. Absolutely worthless person and horrendous adjudicator.

Other

Comment #: CA48753
Rating:1.0

Comments:
This judge is horrendous. He has no concept of economics or any common sense whatsoever. Frankly, I think he's just stupid. He's obviously a political hack appointed by a failed governor. He is absolutely worthless.

Other

Comment #: CA41857
Rating:10.0

Comments:
His Honorable Judge David Sotelo is a great fair judge and we need more Judges like him. He took time to read and review all pleadings and exhibits, he listened to all arguments from both sides and made a fair just rulling. from his rullings you can tell that he did not miss anything and he applied the law accordingly.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA37282
Rating:9.5

Comments:
Judge Sotelo presided over a 4 week court trial. He was very fair and reasonable in scheduling witness testimony and addressing conflicts in counsel's calendars. He took copious notes, asked salient questions when appropriate, and wrote a well reasoned statement of decision. He was interested in the case, took his job and role seriously. Yes, he used to be a criminal lawyer and has greater experience in that arena, but he did an excellent job learning up the law and being fair.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA34153
Rating:1.1

Comments:
This is like Judge Judy reality TV. Throw away the law books. It is "alternative facts" - wonder what his appeal ratio looks like ?

Civil Litigation - Govt.

Comment #: CA34152
Rating:1.4

Comments:
Lazy, cut and paste bits and paraphrases, does not read case law let alone apply it, extremely biased towards landlords. It is true from other comments, oral arguments about tentatives are totally ignored, scholarship non-existent, lots of ham fisted conclusions and sweeping generalizations based on gut feeling.

Zero ability at statutory interpretation of grammar, unprepared always and never properly read up.

The orders are sloppy, rules of evidence ignored. I could go on but with this much smoke you know there is fire.

Should be removed from the bench

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA28265
Rating:1.0

Comments:
The worst Judge in LA County. Discriminates against female attorneys, condescending and arrogant to female attorneys. Doesn't review the record; doesn't review the evidence, unprepared, lacks basic knowledge and generally could care less. You can't get a discovery hearing for 5 months and then he will not even do you the courtesy of looking at your papers. Doesn't care about the rules and will not enforce them.

Other

Comment #: CA18871
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
This judge engaged in communication with Allstate Insurance's female defense attorney behind my back. My issue is that after he approved a settlement by stipulation and I watched his Clerk enter it into the court's computer, he floated the agreement out of the court's computer and sent my P.I. case to a special trial but wouldn't tell me why there was a need for a special trial .... where of course, Allstate Ins. was the big winner. This was a cut and dried case about me taking a direct hit to my left-side kidney, broken left hip, deranged discs in my back, and broken left-and-right side groin after being struck by Allstate Ins's negligent vehicle operator who was talking on his cell phone according to 2 witnesses. I am an old woman and did not do anything wrong as I walked legally within a pedestrian crosswalk on a green light. I have a copy of the Stipulation that I signed. At the 'special trial' I was ordered that I could not tell the jury that there was a settlement by stipulation from several weeks prior. I suspected this judge and a second judge orchestrated a fraud against me so I refused to sign the check from Allstate Ins. I have not been compensated one dime for my personal injury. Last year, both of my kidneys failed leaving me facing death with 94% loss of kidney function. With dialysis treatments 3x a week, I am regaining some of my health .... the County of Los Angeles, David Sotelo, Allstate Ins., have not seen the last of me!

Other

Comment #: CA18869
Rating:1.0

Comments:
If I could I would give this judge -5*

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA14394
Rating:1.0

Comments:
Horrible. . . . . Not sure if it is laziness, lack of diligence, inabilty to manage his calendar, or slovenliness. . . His clerk did the write-up on the case; poorly reasoned; result oriented; desirous of just "kicking" the case. . . . Too complicated and detailed for Judge Soleto to handle. Never opened court on time. . .Not once. Rank incompetent. If you get assigned to Judge Sotelo, affidavit him. . . .particularly if a plaintiff with a complicated or detailed case.

Litigant

Comment #: CA13490
Rating:1.0

Comments:
Very, very bias', uncertain of the law.I have tried to have him removed from a case and he will not go away

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA13369
Rating:1.9

Comments:
This is the worst judge I've ever been before in over 30 years of practice. He hates women attorneys (I am one) and is mean to in pro per litigants. He insists on scheduling things in a very short period of time, causing great time and expense to litigants, especially women.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA13161
Rating:1.1

Comments:
An embarrassment to the judicial system. Writes tentatives that ignore simple facts and clear legal issues without explanation. Will listen to oral argument with a blank expression, then will affirm his tentative without comment or explanation. Read the other comments or spend some time in his courtroom. Stay away from this courtroom at all costs.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA12702
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
If you want any chance in this courtroom, bring a court reporter with you. It's a night and day difference between his treatment on the record and his treatment off the record.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA11763
Rating:1.8

Comments:
Horrid judge. Former prosecutor who only likes criminal law; knows nothing about civil law, and doesn't care that he knows nothing about civil law. Takes a side early, and only rules in that side's favor, regardless of legal merits. Russian roulette with this judge on any issue. Very dim. Doesn't care that he doesn't know law. Doesn't care that he is openly biased. A blind monkey would give you a better shot at lawful justice.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA10483
Rating:2.6

Comments:
One of the worst. He seems to have little knowledge of the Civil -side of the law and apparently has no interest learning it. His decisions appear arbitrary. He seems to pick a side that he likes and completely disregards any law with which he either disagrees or does not understand. He tries to appear no-nonsense and efficient, but really uses that as an excuse to favor one side over another. He makes no secret at the outset as to which side he prefers.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA8701
Rating:2.0

Comments:
I have been practicing law for over 40 years. He is one of the worst judges I have ever seen. He thinks he is smart, but he isn't. He simply doesn't understand the law or even care about making the correct decision.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: CA7594
Rating:1.0

Comments:
I've had the displeasure of confronting many bad judges in my career. Judge Sotelo is one of the worst and does not belong on the bench. If you're looking for a judge who respects, understands, and upholds the law without allowing his personal feelings to get in the way of his decision-making, he's not the one. He does not seem to care about his image either and makes it crystal clear that he does not care about black letter law and will rule based upon his personal opinions as to what is right and wrong. It's only a matter of time before the California Council for Judicial Performance will be addressing his conduct. It's truly unfortunate that judges in California do not have to qualify to become judges but are merely appointed at the whim of the governor. Judge Sotelo is a perfect example of what can and, often, does go wrong.

Prosecutor

Comment #: CA7484
Rating:10.0

Comments:
Bright, fair-minded, and courteous. Possesses the proper judicial temperament, and is very conscientious.

Litigant

Comment #: CA7476
Rating:1.0

Comments:
Refuses to give basis for his decisions, especially to Pro Pers. Is quite rude to Pro Pers as well. Get him off the bench. Do not vote for him.

Other

Comment #: CA6992
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
this guy is lazy and stupid. he was 20 years a prosecutor and knows next to nothing about civil law and has no inclination to learn. stay away from this guy no matter which side you represent.