Gail A. Andler

Gail A. Andler is a retired American judge who served in the Orange County, California Superior Court for over 22 years (the first three years as a judge on the Municipal Court). She was assigned to its specialized complex civil litigation program for ten years, from 2007 until her retirement. She has been a leader in the national community of specialized business court judges, and has been acknowledged with numerous awards for her work as a trial judge. Since retiring as a judge, she has been highly sought out as a neutral in alternative dispute resolution settings. Andler has been recognized for her service to at-risk children and youth.

Judicial service In 1997, California Governor Pete Wilson appointed Andler to serve as a judge on the Superior Court of Orange County, a trial level court. Andler was later elected to the Superior Court in 1998. Before her 1997 appointment, Andler had served since 1994 as a Municipal Court judge in Orange County's Central District, located in the city of Santa Ana. In 1998, California's municipal courts were merged into the superior courts. Andler retired from the Superior Court in 2017.

In 2000, the California Judicial Council, the policy making body of the California court system, established Complex Civil Litigation Pilot Programs in a number of California county superior courts, including Orange County. The complex civil litigation docket focuses on active judicial management of complex cases with an emphasis on efficient and effective resolution of complex cases. Judges are assigned to serve in the complex civil litigation program "based on their training, experience, interest in business and complex litigation, and commitment to engaging in ongoing judicial education." The pilot program became permanent, and has continued to operate since 2000 in Orange County's superior court.

Andler was selected and assigned to the Orange County complex civil litigation program in 2007, replacing Judge Jonathan Cannon, and served in that program until her retirement in 2017. In connection with her experience as a specialized complex litigation judge, Andler has been a leader in the national community of specialized business court judges. She is a past president of the American College of Business Court Judges. She is a co-author of The Business Courts Benchbook. She served as a Business Courts Representative to the American Bar Association's Business Law Section. She has also served as chair of the Business and Corporate Litigation Committee of the American Bar Association's Business Law Section.

Andler also served two terms as presiding judge of the Orange County Superior Court Appellate Division. As a lawyer, she was in private practice and also served as a deputy district attorney in the Ventura County District Attorney's Office.

Alternative dispute resolution After retiring as a judge in 2017, Andler has been a private neutral working for JAMS, serving as an arbitrator, mediator, and special master. She has become a highly respected and sought after neutral. She is also a Fellow of the Academy of Court Appointed Neutrals. Andler has written on the value of mediating electronic discovery disputes.

Retired United States magistrate judge Jay C. Gandhi has said of Andler, "'Judge Andler represents the ideal, triple threat as a neutral–a keen eye for assessing the strengths and weaknesses of each side's case, creative and sophisticated in pursuing settlement strategies and tenacious in achieving a resolution'". She is a member of CASA's board of directors. Distinguished Judicial Fellows Award.

Awards and honors Among other honors and awards; Andler received the Children's Champion Award from the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Orange County (2024) Andler was honored by the American Bar Association Business Law Section's Women Business Advocates Committee for contributions to the enhancement of women in the legal profession Andler was recognized by both the Orange County Women Lawyers and the Celtic Bar Association as Judge of the Year (2016) Andler has received the Orange County Trial Lawyers' Jerrold Oliver Award, Andler has received the Orange County Bar Foundation Project Youth's Distinguished Judicial Fellows Award Chair of the Practice Development Committee and co-chair of the Women Business and Commercial Advocates, within the American Bar Association's Business Law Section Fellow of the College of Commercial Arbitrators Member of the Board of Directors of Court Appointed Special Advocates of Orange County