--- title: "A. J Richlin | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/a-j-richlin-california-us-magistrate" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # A. J Richlin U.S. District Court for the Central District of California · U.S. Magistrate Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Central District of California - State: California - Role: U.S. Magistrate Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-29 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### civil remote testimony Scope: courtwide In federal district-court civil proceedings, testimony is ordinarily taken in open court; remote contemporaneous testimony requires good cause in compelling circumstances and appropriate safeguards. Evidence excerpt: For good cause in compelling circumstances and with appropriate safeguards, the court may permit testimony in open court by contemporaneous transmission from a different location. [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### criminal recording and broadcasting Scope: courtwide Federal district courts may not permit courtroom photography or broadcasting during criminal judicial proceedings unless a statute or another federal rule provides an exception. Evidence excerpt: Except as otherwise provided by a statute or these rules, the court must not permit the taking of photographs in the courtroom during judicial proceedings or the broadcasting of judicial proceedings from the courtroom. [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=94) - [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=94) - [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=94) - [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) - [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/a-j-richlin-california-us-magistrate", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/a-j-richlin-california-us-magistrate", "name": "A. J Richlin | KnowJudges", "description": "A. J Richlin, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. Source-linked judicial identity, courtroom procedures, and presentation guidance.", "dateModified": "2026-10-08", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/a-j-richlin-california-us-magistrate#judge" } }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/a-j-richlin-california-us-magistrate#judge", "name": "A. J Richlin", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/a-j-richlin-california-us-magistrate", "jobTitle": "U.S. Magistrate Judge", "worksFor": { "@type": "GovernmentOrganization", "name": "U.S. District Court for the Central District of California" }, "sameAs": [ "https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=94" ] }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "KnowJudges", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "California", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/state/california" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "A. J Richlin", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/a-j-richlin-california-us-magistrate" } ] } ] } ``` ## Analytics The published one-year federal docket dataset through 2026-06-30 records 68 cases assigned to this judge and 23 terminated cases. Median disposition time was 1.2 months across 23 terminated cases. - Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/ ## Federal civil docket activity Dataset updated through 2026-06-30. | Period | Assigned cases | Terminated cases | Median disposition (months) | Median sample | | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | | 1y | 68 | 23 | 1.2 | 23 | | 2y | 139 | 67 | 2.5 | 67 | | 5y | 208 | 133 | 4.1 | 133 | | 10y | 210 | 135 | 4.1 | 135 | Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/ ## Biography ### Professional career - United States Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, appointed July 31, 2023, to succeed Alexander F. MacKinnon - Appointed by the judges of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on July 31, 2023, filling the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge MacKinnon - From 2012 to 2017, he was Senior Counsel in the Business Litigation Group at Foley & Lardner LLP in Los Angeles - maintained a pro bono practice and completed a secondment at the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office for first‐chair jury trial experience - For over 15 years, Richlin has been an Adjunct Professor of Law at Loyola Law School, Los Angeles, teaching appellate brief writing, oral advocacy, and mentoring students interested in judicial clerkships - Judge Richlin serves in the Western Division of the Central District of California, based in Los Angeles ### Education ### Additional information - B.A. (honors) from Northwestern University in 2003 and a J.D., cum laude, from Loyola Law School, Los Angeles in 2006, where he edited the law review - Before joining the bench, Richlin was General Counsel and Chief Litigation Officer at Prime Healthcare, one of the largest U.S. hospital systems, where he led a national legal department of over 30 attorneys and oversaw litigation in 14 states across federal, state, administrative, and arbitral forums ## Published courtroom rules ### Shared court rules - [Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-651872d6e45e0d82319ecccc) — Civil actions in United States District Courts; Rule 81 exceptions apply. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-civil-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-8721a344fececced2257fe1d) — Criminal proceedings in United States District Courts; this conservative mapping does not distribute appellate-specific provisions to appellate judges. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.