The Honorable Laura A. Cordero

Laura A. Cordero was nominated by President George W. Bush to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on February 14, 2005. Her nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate on June 24, 2005.

Judge Cordero was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, and attended DePaul University in Chicago, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics in 1985, with highest honors. She earned her law degree from Harvard Law School in 1988.

Judge Cordero’s dedication to public service spans her legal career. Following graduation from law school, she served a two-year term as law clerk to the Honorable James A. Parker of the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico. In 1991, Judge Cordero joined the Department of Justice under the Attorney General's Honor Law Graduate Program, where she was assigned to the Voting Section of the Civil Rights Division. In 1993, Judge Cordero joined the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia. During her twelve-year tenure as an Assistant United States Attorney, she prosecuted a wide variety of criminal cases in the Superior Court for the District of Columbia, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, and the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. In 1999, she was assigned as the first Community Prosecutor stationed at the Metropolitan Police Department Third District, as part of the United States Attorney’s Office's city-wide Community Prosecution Program.

Prior to her appointment to the bench, Judge Cordero was the Executive Assistant United States Attorney for External Affairs. She was responsible for developing, coordinating, and maintaining effective partnerships with federal and local law enforcement, government agencies, and the community in the District of Columbia. She also coordinated an extensive community engagement network, involving a full range of community-based programs and initiatives for youth and adults specifically aimed at reducing violent crime in the District of Columbia.

Judge Cordero currently serves in the Criminal Division, presiding over misdemeanor cases. Judge Cordero most recently served as the Presiding and Deputy Presiding Judge (2021–2024) of the Probate and Tax Division, handling decedent’s estates, intervention proceedings, trusts, and tax cases. Judge Cordero has served twice in the Civil Division, most recently (2017–2020) as Presiding and Deputy Presiding Judge of the Civil Division. During her term, Judge Cordero presided over a broad range of civil suits, including medical malpractice, contracts, and torts. In 2016, she served as the Presiding Judge of the Domestic Violence Unit, while presiding over domestic violence misdemeanors. In 2015, she presided over requests for Civil Protection Orders in domestic violence cases.

She has also served in the Family Court, handling cases involving abuse and neglect, adoptions, divorce, custody, child support, juvenile delinquency, juvenile drug court, and involuntary civil commitments for persons diagnosed with mental illness. Judge Cordero is a faculty member for Harvard Law School’s Trial Advocacy Workshop, as a faculty member for the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, and as a Board Member of the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation.