Judge Samantha P. Jessner Receives 2024 Liberty Achievement Award
Thomson Reuters presented Judge Samantha P. Jessner with the American Bar Association’s Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section (TIPS) Liberty Achievement Award on May 1.
Thomson Reuters has sponsored the TIPS Liberty Achievement Award to recognize attorneys and judges who take leadership roles in promoting diversity in the profession of law since its inception in 2008. The award highlights individuals who prioritize diversity through the choices they make in their careers and the work they do each day.
Jessner, Los Angeles Superior Court presiding judge, has been a co-chair of the court’s Technology Committee and is at the forefront of its technology innovation initiatives. She was a recipient of the ABA Legal Technology Resource Center’s 2021 Women of Legal Tech.
Before assuming her current role, Jessner served as an assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California (Los Angeles) for 11 years. She began her legal career as a litigation associate at Sheppard Mullin and was previously in-house counsel at Boeing and assistant inspector general for the Los Angeles Police Commission.
Jessner is a founding member of the Association of African American California Judicial Officers, a member of the National Association of Women Judges and a member of the Trusteeship, the Southern California chapter of the International Women’s Forum.
“Judge Jessner has advanced the field of law immeasurably through her commitment to thoughtfully exploring and tirelessly championing initiatives relating to both ethics and technology,” said Laura Safdie, vice president for Artificial Intelligence GTM and global affairs lead for the legal segment of Thomson Reuters. “These issues profoundly affect diversity and inclusion in the legal profession, and we’re grateful to be able to participate in honoring her steadfast work to ensure we all continue to hold ourselves and our profession to the highest possible standards.”
As a Liberty Achievement Award recipient, Jessner joins a prestigious group of highly accomplished leaders who also serve as diversity champions in the legal profession. Previous Liberty Achievement Award winners include Ellie Jurado-Nieves, vice president and assistant general counsel of Strategic Public Policy Initiatives at The Guardian Life Insurance Company (2023); Judge Pamila J. Brown (2022); Judge Bernice B. Donald (2021 for a Lifetime Liberty Achievement Award); and Judge Lourdes Ventura (2019).
Thomson Reuters is honored to recognize all recipients’ remarkable achievements and commitment to diversity and inclusion. For more details, read the ABA’s press release.
Photo, left to right: Loren Podwill, ABA TIPS; Judge Samantha P. Jessner; Erin Nelson, Thomson Reuters
