Justice Thomas L. Willhite, Jr. (Ret.) brings more than 33 years of judicial experience to his work as a mediator, arbitrator, and referee in Los Angeles and throughout Southern California, but what attorneys often remember most about him is his legal intellect and the way he makes clients feel during difficult disputes. Calm, approachable, thoughtful, and genuinely engaged, Justice Willhite has built a reputation for creating an atmosphere where parties lower their guard, trust the process, and become willing to have the honest conversations necessary to reach resolution.
After serving on the Los Angeles Municipal Court, the Los Angeles Superior Court, and the California Court of Appeal, Justice Willhite retired from the bench in 2023 having authored approximately 2,000 appellate opinions and participated in thousands of additional appeals and writ proceedings spanning virtually every area of California civil law. His experience includes business and commercial litigation, employment and FEHA matters, insurance coverage and bad faith, CEQA and environmental disputes, class actions, intellectual property, probate and trusts, personal injury, professional liability, real estate litigation, and complex appellate matters.
California Court of Appeal
Associate Justice, Second Appellate District, Division Four, 2005-2023
Superior Court of California, Los Angeles County
Judge of the Superior Court, 1997-2005
Municipal Court of California, Los Angeles County
Judge of the Municipal Court, 1990-1997
• Appellate
• Business / Consumer Contracts
• CEQA/Environmental
• Civil Rights
• Class Actions
• Employment
• Health Care
• Insurance
• Medical Malpractice
• Personal Injury/Torts
• Probate, Estate & Trusts
• Product Liability
• Professional Malpractice
• Real Property
• Trade Secrets / Intellectual Property
