Associate Justice Joshua P. Groban is on the ballot Nov. 3 in a nonpartisan retention election for the California Supreme Court. Voters statewide, including those in Beverly Hills, Bel Air and Holmby Hills, will decide whether to keep Groban on the bench with a simple yes-or-no vote.

No opponents appear on the ballot.

Groban was first appointed by Governor Jerry Brown on Nov. 14, 2018, to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Associate Justice Kathryn Mickle Werdegar, according to the California Governor's Office archive. The Commission on Judicial Appointments confirmed him on Dec. 21, 2018, and he was sworn in on Jan. 3, 2019. In the November 2022 election, California voters retained Groban with 68.4% of the vote, according to Wikipedia.

Over the last three midterm cycles, all California justices won retention with at least two-thirds of the vote, according to Bolts Magazine.

Candidate information

  • Name: Joshua P. Groban
  • Born: Aug. 15, 1973
  • Raised in: San Diego, where he attended public schools
  • Education: Bachelor of arts, Stanford University (1995); juris doctor, Harvard Law School (1998)
  • Race: California Supreme Court Associate Justice retention election (nonpartisan)
  • Election date: Nov. 3, 2026
  • Ballot status: Certified for the ballot

Experience and public service

Before joining the bench, Groban built a career in private practice and government service, according to the Supreme Court of California's biography page. In private practice, he specialized in complex civil litigation with a focus on antitrust, internal investigations and intellectual property.

His career path, according to the Governor's Office archive:

  • Law clerk, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, for Judge William C. Conner (1998–1999)
  • Attorney, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP (1999–2005)
  • Attorney, Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP (2005–2010)
  • Legal counsel, Jerry Brown for Governor Campaign (2010–2011)
  • Senior advisor, Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. (2011–2018)
  • Lecturer, UCLA School of Law (2014–2018), according to CalMatters' 2022 voter guide
  • Associate justice, California Supreme Court (Jan. 3, 2019–present)

As senior advisor to Brown, Groban oversaw the appointment of approximately 600 judges throughout the state, roughly one out of every three judges in California. The Governor's Office called those appointments the most diverse in the state's history.

Editor's note: No issue positions, endorsements or candidate questionnaire responses were available for this profile. This article will be updated if that information becomes available.