JAMS announces the addition of Hon. John H. Sugiyama (Ret.) to its panel. Judge Sugiyama presided for 18 years on the Contra Costa County Superior Court. During the last nine years of his judicial career, he served as the supervising judge for the probate division. Before his appointment as a judicial officer, he served as a senior assistant attorney general in both the criminal and civil divisions of the California Department of Justice and as a deputy director and chief counsel for the California Department of Corrections.
Based in the Walnut Creek Resolution Center, Judge Sugiyama will serve as an arbitrator and mediator, handling disputes in the areas of civil rights, estates and trusts, and higher education.
Between 2014 and 2019, Judge Sugiyama served as the chair of the Judicial Council of California’s Probate and Mental Health Advisory Committee. During his tenure, he helped inform the judicial branch’s position on all proposed state legislation in the field of probate law affecting the administration and operations of the courts.
Judge Sugiyama received his B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley and his J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law.