The Honorable Deborah Israel

Deborah J. Israel was nominated to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia by President Obama in 2016 and again by President Trump in 2017 and 2019. Her nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate on November 21, 2019.

A native of Atlantic City, New Jersey, Judge Israel graduated from Rutgers University with Honors in Political Science in 1986. She received her law degree from Rutgers Law School in 1990 where she was a member of the Rutgers National Moot Court Team. Between college and law school, Judge Israel was an intern for United States Congressman, Peter W. Rodino, Jr. (D-NJ).

For nearly 16 years, Judge Israel was a partner in the law firm of Womble Bond Dickinson where she served as Chief Operating Partner of the firm and head of the Washington, DC litigation group. Prior to joining Womble, Judge Israel was a partner with DLA Piper (formerly Piper Rudnick LLP). Throughout her career in private practice, Judge Israel focused on complex commercial and civil litigation.

While in private practice, Judge Israel was named a Fellow in the American Bar Foundation and a Fellow in the Litigation Counsel of America -Trial Lawyer Honor Society. She was named one of America’s Top 100 Bet-the-Company Litigators and was recognized in The Best Lawyers of America in the fields of real estate, land use and zoning. Martindale Hubbell awarded Judge Israel its highest rating of AV Preeminent and she was a Super-Lawyers Honoree from 2009 to 2020.

Prior to joining the Court, Judge Israel served two terms on the District of Columbia Bar Lawyer Assistance Committee which supports the provision of services to individuals with substance abuse and mental health issues. She also served as President of the District of Columbia Women’s Bar Association and President of the WBA Foundation.

In 2002, Judge Israel received the New Jersey State Historic Preservation Award for pro bono litigation that resulted in the preservation and protection of the Black Creek Site, a historic Native American site in Vernon, New Jersey, with artifacts evidencing over 10,000 years of recurrent use and reflecting our collective human heritage.