Judge Susan Illston
Northern California U.S. District Court
Susan Yvonne Illston was born in 1948 in Tokyo, Japan. She was raised in the military, then earned her undergraduate degree from Duke University and her Juris Doctor from Stanford Law School.
Illston worked in private practice as an associate and then a partner for a Burlingame, California, law firm for twenty-two years.
President Bill Clinton nominated her for federal judge of the Northern District of California in January 1995. The Senate confirmed her in May, and she received her judicial commission the next day. Illston assumed senior status in July 2013.
In the News…
U.S. District Judge Susan Illston ruled this week that the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) plan, proposed under then-Secretary Kristi Noem, to reduce the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) workforce by 50 percent was not lawful.
In response to a lawsuit from unions, Judge Illston determined that DHS “acted unlawfully in usurping FEMA’s authority over its personnel,” which would have included Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery Employees (CORE) staff.
“DHS acted arbitrarily and capriciously when it revoked FEMA’s long-standing authority to renew CORE requirements,” Judge Illston wrote. She stated DHS violated the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act. This federal law established FEMA as a separate entity within DHS and prohibits the department secretary from “substantially or significantly reducing ‘the authorities, responsibilities, or functions’” of the agency.
Judge Illston said, “There is no evidence in the record reflecting reasoned decision-making for this about-face or for the subsequent conditions DHS placed on FEMA’s renewal authority.”
Contact this Leader…
Did you pray for Judge Illston today? You can let her know at:
The Honorable Susan Illston
Northern California U.S. District Court
Phillip Burton Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse
450 Golden Gate Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94102
