---
title: "Risa Berkower | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/risa-berkower-dc-superior-court-magistrate-judge"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-07"
---

# Risa Berkower

Superior Court of the District of Columbia · Magistrate Judge

## Profile

- Court: Superior Court of the District of Columbia
- State: District of Columbia
- Role: 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

### recording and rebroadcasting

Scope: courtwide

Recording, photographing, or rebroadcasting a remote Superior Court hearing is not allowed.

Evidence excerpt: Audio and video recording, taking pictures of remote hearings, and sharing the live or recorded remote hearing by rebroadcasting, live-streaming, or otherwise are not allowed.

[Hearing Information](https://www.dccourts.gov/superior-court/hearing-information)
Source checked: 2026-07-27


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://www.dccourts.gov/superior-court/superior-court-judges/berkower-risa)
- [Official roster](https://www.dccourts.gov/superior-court/superior-court-judges/berkower-risa)
- [District of Columbia Courts official judicial roster](https://www.dccourts.gov/superior-court/superior-court-judges/berkower-risa)
- [Hearing Information](https://www.dccourts.gov/superior-court/hearing-information)

## JSON-LD

```json
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@graph": [
    {
      "@type": "WebPage",
      "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/risa-berkower-dc-superior-court-magistrate-judge",
      "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/risa-berkower-dc-superior-court-magistrate-judge",
      "name": "Risa Berkower | KnowJudges",
      "description": "Risa Berkower, Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Source-linked judicial identity, courtroom procedures, and presentation guidance.",
      "dateModified": "2026-10-07",
      "isPartOf": {
        "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/#website"
      },
      "mainEntity": {
        "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/risa-berkower-dc-superior-court-magistrate-judge#judge"
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Person",
      "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/risa-berkower-dc-superior-court-magistrate-judge#judge",
      "name": "Risa Berkower",
      "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/risa-berkower-dc-superior-court-magistrate-judge",
      "jobTitle": "Magistrate Judge",
      "worksFor": {
        "@type": "GovernmentOrganization",
        "name": "Superior Court of the District of Columbia"
      },
      "sameAs": [
        "https://www.dccourts.gov/superior-court/superior-court-judges/berkower-risa"
      ]
    },
    {
      "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
      "itemListElement": [
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 1,
          "name": "KnowJudges",
          "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 2,
          "name": "District of Columbia",
          "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/state/district-of-columbia"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 3,
          "name": "Risa Berkower",
          "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/risa-berkower-dc-superior-court-magistrate-judge"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}
```

## Biography

### Professional career

- Magistrate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, appointed on August 19, 2024, by Chief Judge Anita Josey-Herring
- Judge Berkower serves in the Criminal Division of the D.C. Superior Court
- Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia (Fraud, Public Corruption, and Civil Rights Section), prosecuting numerous criminal civil rights cases
- Private practice as an associate at Morvillo Abramowitz Grand Iason & Anello PC in New York
- Clerk for Hon. Christopher F. Droney, U.S. District Judge for the District of Connecticut
- Judge Berkower has stated that her approach is to hear all sides, keep an open mind, and decide based on the evidence and the law, reflecting her own experiences as a litigant

### Education

- magna cum laude, Fordham University School of Law — J.D.
- in Ethics, Politics, and Economics, Yale University — B.A.

### Additional information