Regional judicial retention office
2026 retention electionAssociate Justice, Fourth District Court of Appeal, Division Two
Current officeholder
Michael J. Raphael
Voters across the Fourth Appellate District decide whether Justice Michael J. Raphael should continue serving in the Riverside-based division.
- Court
- Fourth District Court of Appeal, Division Two
- Electorate
- Fourth Appellate District voters in Imperial, Inyo, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Diego counties
- Court location
- Riverside
i
Imperial, Inyo, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Diego counties. Division Two generally hears matters from Inyo, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties.
Office overview
What voters are deciding
The office, electorate, and court jurisdiction are separate from the record of the person currently holding the seat.
Next scheduled vote
Listed for the 2026 general election
Yes or No retention vote
A Yes vote elects the justice to another term. A No vote means the justice is not retained in the office.
- Full term
- 12 years
- Official note
- The Secretary of State's August 12 schedule lists the current term ending January 4, 2027 and the election for November 3, 2026.
Current officeholder
Michael J. Raphael
Justice Raphael joined Division Two in 2018 after six years on the Los Angeles County Superior Court. His trial assignments included small claims, limited civil, unlawful detainer, misdemeanors, civil law and motion, personal injury, and an independent civil calendar. Before the bench, he served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney and led the Criminal Appeals Section in the Central District of California.
- Current court
- Associate Justice since 2018
- Trial bench
- Los Angeles County Superior Court, 2012–2018
- Prior practice
- Federal prosecution, appellate advocacy, civil litigation, and congressional investigations
- Education
- Rice University; Yale Law School
- Appointed by
- Edmund G. Brown Jr. (Jerry Brown)Governor of California, 2018Governor Brown Court of Appeal appointment announcement ↗
General jurisdiction
Types of matters this court hears
These categories describe the court’s work, not a current assignment list for one justice.
Civil appeals
Reviews final judgments and eligible orders in civil matters from the division's trial courts.
Criminal appeals
Reviews criminal judgments and post-judgment orders brought from superior court.
Family and juvenile appeals
Hears appeals involving family law, juvenile dependency, and juvenile justice issues.
Original writ proceedings
Considers petitions such as mandate, prohibition, and habeas corpus within appellate jurisdiction.
Court colleagues
Other members of this court
Division Two has eight justices and generally decides appeals in three-justice panels.
Presiding Justice
Manuel A. Ramirez
Serving since 1990Paper Trail Politics pageOpen judge page →Associate Justice
Art W. McKinster
Serving since 1990Paper Trail Politics pageOpen judge page →Associate Justice
Douglas P. Miller
Serving since 2006Paper Trail Politics pageOpen judge page →Associate Justice
Carol D. Codrington
Serving since 2010Paper Trail Politics pageOpen judge page →Associate Justice
Richard T. Fields
Serving since 2017Paper Trail Politics pageOpen judge page →Associate Justice
Frank J. Menetrez
Serving since 2018Paper Trail Politics pageOpen judge page →Associate Justice
Corey G. Lee
Serving since 2025Paper Trail Politics pageOpen judge page →Roster reviewed · Fourth Appellate District justices roster ↗
Past judicial record
Selected authored opinions
A small, subject-diverse set of published majority opinions authored by the current justice. This is a reading list, not a rating, a complete opinion count, or a sample designed to imply ideology.
People v. S.H.
Majority opinion by Raphael
The published opinion interpreted the proof required to vacate a conviction claimed to be the direct result of intimate-partner or sexual violence and concluded the statutory requirements were not met on this record.
ResultVacatur order reversed
Read the court record ↗In re Samantha F.
Majority opinion by Raphael
The partially published opinion required a fuller inquiry into possible Native American ancestry and also ordered an evidentiary hearing on the father's reunification-services petition.
ResultParental-rights order reversed and remanded
Read the court record ↗Hatley v. Southard
Majority opinion by Raphael
The court held that coercive control over finances, transportation, communications, and movement can qualify as abuse under California's Domestic Violence Prevention Act even without a new act of physical violence.
ResultDenial reversed; new hearing ordered
Read the court record ↗Public court records
Calendar, dockets, and opinions
Division Two generally holds oral argument on the first Tuesday and Wednesday of the month, subject to change. Calendars show scheduled proceedings, not a personalized list of matters Justice Raphael is working on, and this page does not publish an active-case feed.
Division Two oral argument calendar
See the Riverside division's calendar schedule and recently published argument calendars.
Open calendar ↗Appellate case information
Search California Supreme Court and Court of Appeal case records by case number or party name.
Search cases ↗Published and unpublished opinions
Browse the Judicial Branch's public opinion archive and search by court or case number.
Browse opinions ↗Public accountability
Judicial discipline
Public accountability records from California’s Commission on Judicial Performance.
Public decisions foundNo public discipline decision located
Search: Michael Raphael, all court levels · reviewed
The CJP public decisions database returned 0 records for this exact-name search across all court levels.
Important limit: The database covers public judicial disciplinary cases since 1960. Matters without public charges or public discipline remain confidential, so a zero-result search should not be read more broadly.
News and Press Releases
Updates involving this office
Read official court features, selection records, and independent coverage reviewed for this page. Follow each link to its source.
Independent reporting
California's top court reiterates limits of law enforcement immunity defense
Coverage of the California Supreme Court's Leon decision explains how Justice Raphael's separate Court of Appeal opinion identified a conflict in interpretations of government immunity.
Independent reporting
State court broadens domestic abuse protections to include economic harm
Coverage of Hatley v. Southard describes the court's conclusion that coercive financial and communications control can fall within California's definition of domestic abuse.
Selection record
Governor Brown Appoints Six Court of Appeal Justices
The archived appointment announcement names Justice Raphael for Division Two and summarizes his trial-court and federal prosecutorial experience.
About independent coverage: These articles were selected by Paper Trail Politics to document reporting connected to the justice’s public record.
Methodology and limits
Data coverage and sources
Coverage is assessed against the records expected for this judicial office page and is updated as new public information is verified.
Current assessmentFocused coverage
This page connects the officeholder, election schedule, selected judicial records, court workload, public-record tools, discipline search, and reviewed news or appointment records.
- Past opinions
- Three subject-diverse published majority opinions authored by the justice; not a rating or complete opinion count.
- Statistics
- Court- or division-wide context only; not an individualized workload measure.
- Discipline
- Exact-name public-decision search; confidential complaints or proceedings are not visible.
This is a focused voter reading list, not a complete case history, ideology score, individualized workload measure, or representation of confidential discipline matters.
Sources used on this page8 source organizations · 21 records
Fourth Appellate District
5 records from this source are used on the page.
Official biography: Court biography and career historyhttps://appellate.courts.ca.gov/district-courts/4dca/bio/michael-j-raphaelDivision Two oral argument calendar: See the Riverside division's calendar schedule and recently published argument calendars.https://appellate.courts.ca.gov/district-courts/4dca/oral-argument-calendarAppellate case information: Search California Supreme Court and Court of Appeal case records by case number or party name.https://appellatecases.courtinfo.ca.gov/Division Two practices and jurisdiction: Official operating practices stating that Division Two handles appellate matters arising in Inyo, Riverside, and San Bernardino countieshttps://appellate.courts.ca.gov/system/files/general/iop_district4_division2.pdfFourth District history and geographic scope: Official history of the district and its three divisionshttps://appellate.courts.ca.gov/district-courts/4dca/about
California Secretary of State
2 records from this source are used on the page.
California Secretary of State 2026 judicial election schedule: Election date, term ending date, bench roster, and ballot listinghttps://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/statewide-elections/2026-primary/election-guide/section-05-supreme-appellate-courts.pdfGeneral election key dates: The declaration period closed August 15; the Secretary of State says the certified candidate list will be posted August 27, 2026.https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/upcoming-elections/general-election-november-3-2026/key-dates-deadlines
Commission on Judicial Performance
2 records from this source are used on the page.
Exact-name public decision search: Michael Raphael, all court levelshttps://cjp.ca.gov/discipline-decisions-database-results/?wpv_view_count=106760&wpv-wpcf-last_name=Raphael&wpv-wpcf-first_name=Michael&wpv-wpcf-discipline=&wpv-wpcf-misconduct_type=&wpv-wpcf-county_appellate_district=&wpv-wpcf-court_level=&wpv-wpcf-decision_date_min=&wpv-wpcf-decision_date_min-format=m%2Fd%2FY&wpv-wpcf-decision_date_max=&wpv-wpcf-decision_date_max-format=m%2Fd%2FY&wpv_filter_submit=SubmitCJP discipline and decision search: Official database and confidentiality explanationhttps://cjp.ca.gov/discipline_and_decision_search/
California Court of Appeal
1 record from this source is used on the page.
Judicial Council of California
8 records from this source are used on the page.
Judicial Council 2026 Court Statistics Report, table 3: Fourth District, Division Two, fiscal year 2024–25https://courts.ca.gov/system/files/file/csr_2026.pdfJudicial Council 2025 Court Statistics Report, table 3: Fourth District, Division Two, fiscal year 2023–24https://courts.ca.gov/system/files/file/final_csr_2025.pdfJudicial Council 2024 Court Statistics Report, table 3: Fourth District, Division Two, fiscal year 2022–23https://courts.ca.gov/sites/default/files/courts/default/2024-12/2024-court-statistics-report.pdfPeople v. S.H.: Published opinion E083533https://www.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/E083533.PDFIn re Samantha F.: Published opinion E080888https://www.courts.ca.gov/opinions/archive/E080888.PDFHatley v. Southard: Published opinion E080000https://www.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/E080000.PDFPublished and unpublished opinions: Browse the Judicial Branch's public opinion archive and search by court or case number.https://courts.ca.gov/opinionsJudicial selection and retention: Official overview of how California selects judges and justiceshttps://newsroom.courts.ca.gov/branch-facts/judicial-selection-how-california-chooses-its-judges-and-justices
Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr.
Courthouse News Service
San Francisco Chronicle
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