Abby Abinanti is California’s first Native American female lawyer. Abinanti was born in 1947 in San Francisco, California and she grew up on the

Yurok Indian Reservation The Yurok Indian Reservation is a Native American reservation for the Yurok people located in parts of Del Norte and Humboldt counties, California, on a stretch of the Klamath River. It is one of a very few tribes who have never been remove ...

. She initially studied journalism at Humboldt State University, but then decided to enroll at the University of New Mexico School of Law. She was particularly interested in the field of Indian law and later specialized in family court proceedings and juvenile dependency due in large part to the Indian Child Welfare Act (1978). She was called to the

State Bar of California The State Bar of California is California's official attorney licensing agency. It is responsible for managing the admission of lawyers to the practice of law, investigating complaints of professional misconduct, prescribing appropriate disciplin ...

in 1974. During the course of her legal career, Abinanti had developed the first tribal program to help members with the expungement process. In the 1990s, she began serving as a Commissioner in the Unified Family Court for the

San Francisco Superior Court The Superior Court of California of the County of San Francisco is the Superior Courts of California, state superior court with jurisdiction over the San Francisco, City and County of San Francisco. History In 1976 the Court helped to create the ...

until retiring in 2011. From 2014-2015, she served as a part-time Commissioner for San Francisco Superior Court’s dependency division. Abinanti began serving as a Judge of the Yurok Tribal Court in 1997. Since 2007, she has served as the court’s Chief Judge.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Abinanti, Abby 1947 births Living people 20th-century Native Americans 21st-century Native Americans 20th-century American judges 21st-century American judges 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers California lawyers Native American judges Native American lawyers Yurok people 20th-century American women judges 21st-century American women judges 20th-century American women lawyers 21st-century American women lawyers 20th-century Native American women 21st-century Native American women

See also

References