Position Title
Lecturer
Allison Claire has served as a U.S. Magistrate Judge since 2012. Judge Claire earned her B.A. in American Studies at U.C. Santa Cruz and her law degree at U.C. Berkeley. She clerked for U.S. District Judge Lawrence K. Karlton and then joined the Office of the Federal Defender in Sacramento, where she represented California inmates—including death-sentenced inmates—in federal habeas corpus proceedings in the district court and the Ninth Circuit. Judge Claire serves on the Magistrate Judge Education Advisory Committee of the Federal Judicial Center, and regularly teaches other judges. She is active in local bench/bar activities including civics education, programs that promote access to justice, and initiatives encouraging diversity on the bench and in the legal profession.