Oakdale resident Stacy Speiller will be sworn in as a Stanislaus County Superior Court Judge next month.
The Investiture Ceremony is scheduled for Friday, Dec. 8 at 4 p.m. in the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors’ Chambers at 1010 10th St., Modesto, in the basement level meeting room.
“Right now I’m a family law specialist,” said Speiller, who received her appointment to the bench from Gov. Jerry Brown earlier this month. “This will be a swearing in but it’s more a celebration of the court system, more of a community thing, it is open to the public.”
Speiller, who currently is a partner in the law frim of Cash-Dudley Speiller and Torres in Modesto said she will be phasing out her partnership as she moves in to her new career on the bench.
And while her specialty is in family law at the Modesto firm, she isn’t sure what type of cases or what department she will be in at the county courthouse.
“They will assign me wherever I’m needed,” Speiller said.
The process to be appointed to the bench is a lengthy, rigorous one, she explained, including completing a multi-page extensive application and appearing before different interview panels as well as having colleagues in the law community provide input. Speiller first appeared before a panel in Stockton and later had a roughly 90-minute interview in Los Angeles as she moved through the process.
A partner in the Modesto firm since 2010, Speiller and her family live in Oakdale and said they chose to locate here for a few different reasons.
“We really liked the community, it has a nice school system and my job is based in Modesto,” she said of being close to work while still enjoying the small town atmosphere of Oakdale.
The swearing in is open to the public, and Speiller said some of her friends and their families will be attending. A reception will follow the swearing in ceremony in the mezzanine.
She also said once the application and interviews were completed, it was a waiting game.
“I got a call from the appointment secretary for the governor,” Speiller explained. “You really don’t know (if you’ve been selected) until you get that call.”
