Commissioner Laura Cohen

Honorable Laura Cohen was elected in January 2019 as a Commissioner for Los Angeles Superior Court. Prior she was a Clinical Professor at Southwestern Law School where she was locally and nationally recognized for her work including implementing and directing both the Street Law Clinic and Public Service Program. Commissioner Cohen continues to teach attorneys and judges on a range of issues including self-represented litigants and domestic violence. While at Southwestern she worked closely with many court-related community programs. She began her career as a dependency attorney in Children’s Court, has mediated permanency planning cases, and later initiated the Children’s Law Center Year-Long Program which she continues her involvement working with students and graduates interested in a career advocating for children and families. Her 30-plus years of experience working with youth and families, law students and graduates, collaborating with legal services organizations, and helping the community on a range of pro bono matters serves her well with her current assignment handling restraining orders. Commissioner Cohen has a J.D. from the University of San Francisco School of Law and a B.A. from UC Santa Barbara.