FEATURE ARTICLE
Making History, Oona Mallett Becomes the First Female Managing Attorney at the Third District Court of Appeal By Justice Elena J. Duarte and Tim Schooley
Oona Mallett. Photos courtesy of Tim Schooley
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t the end of last year, Oona Mallett was promoted to managing attorney of the Court of Appeal for the Third Appellate District, becoming the first woman to serve in that position in the court’s history. With appeals coming to the Third District from twenty-three counties, the court has the highest incoming appellate caseload in the state, and it contin-
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ues to increase as the populations of Sacramento County and other northern California counties continue to grow. And, as the court’s docket has grown, the number of central staff attorneys has also increased, and the job of the managing attorney has become increasingly complex. In her new role, Oona takes her place on the Third District’s man-
SACRAMENTO LAWYER | Winter 2021 | www.sacbar.org
Hon. Elena J. Duarte is an Associate Justice of the Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District. Tim Schooley is the recently retired managing attorney of the Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District.
agement team. According to the Clerk/Executive Officer of the Third District, Andrea Rohmann: “It’s a proud time to be a woman in the court and part of the Third District Court of Appeal’s first all-female management team, to include the Managing Attorney, Clerk Executive Officer, and Assistant Clerk Executive Officer. I look forward to the day when this isn’t considered a monumental moment and instead just common practice. But today we should give pause and recognition as we continue to chip away at the gender gap.” At age 40, Oona is already a veteran at the Third District, having worked in every attorney position at the court. While a student at McGeorge School of Law, Oona worked as an extern for retired Associate Justice Kathleen Butz. “Oona served as my chambers extern for the Fall Semester 2008,” says Justice Butz. “During her semester, she prepared memorandum opinions in both criminal and civil cases. It was clear she understood appellate review, was a thorough researcher, and could write clearly and concisely, regardless of the difficulty of the legal issue.” After graduating from law school in 2009, Oona took a position as an associate attorney at the Kroloff firm in Stockton. There, Oona did both transactional work regarding corporate formation and real property planning, and civil litigation
