A Project of
the San Diego County Commission on the Status of Women and Girls,
the Women's Museum of California,
SDSU Women's Studies Department, and UCSD Women's Center.
Tamila Ipema
2022
Trailblazer
Born in Tehran, Iran in 1956, Judge Tamila Ebrahimi Ipema left Iran in 1978 to escape the country’s political turmoil. In the United States, she has committed her life to the advancement of democracy, human rights, and social justice.
She fought for the rights of asylum seekers and refugees through her work as a defense attorney, and through her work with the US Department of Justice, before becoming a Supervising research attorney for the Los Angeles Superior Court, and Court Commissioner in Los Angeles and San Diego counties. She was appointed to the position of Judge of San Diego County Superior Court in 2009.
In 2018-2019, Judge Ipema served as the President of National Association of Women Judges. Judge Tamila E. Ipema is the first Iranian-American Judge to be appointed to the position of Judge of the California Superior Court in San Diego.