Judge DeNoce is the Presiding Judge of the Ventura County Superior Court, was appointed to the bench in 2007, and currently presides over general and complex civil cases. Judge Kevin G. DeNoce was awarded and named "Judge of the Year" by the Ventura County Trial Lawyers Association in 2017, and bestowed with the KOC Public Safety Award in 2022. Judge DeNoce was the Supervising Judge for the Civil Division and previously served in the Criminal and Family Law Divisions.
Judge DeNoce has conducted more than 500 jury trials including the following types of cases: medical malpractice, product liability, wrongful death, negligence, trade secrets, auto and airplane accidents, breach of contract, real property transactions, wage disputes, asbestos, employment cases, conservatorships, dangerous road conditions, murder/manslaughter, gang charges, robbery, burglary, kidnapping, sexual assault, battery, DUI, domestic violence, grand theft, and many other types of cases. Judge Kevin G. DeNoce has a balanced background to draw on including over 15 years on the bench presiding over civil, criminal, and family law cases, 11 years as a private attorney where he ran his own law firm and represented over 1000 clients, and 9 years as a former Ventura County prosecutor. While practicing as an attorney, Judge DeNoce handled both civil and criminal cases and litigated civil, criminal, and administrative cases. The benefit of having practiced law in both the public and private sectors, and handled a broad spectrum of cases, brings balanced perspective and background to the bench. Judge DeNoce had two cases he handled as an attorney result in nationally published books and has been an instructor at multiple law schools.
As a former Senior Deputy District Attorney, former President of the Ventura County Deputy District Attorneys' Association, and former instructor at the Ventura County Sheriff's Academy, Judge DeNoce is acutely attuned to the issues concerning law enforcement. Judge DeNoce has assisted in the drafting of legislation, and as an attorney successfully argued cases before the California Supreme Court and Court of Appeal. Judge DeNoce was also the former head of the Appeals and Writs Unit for the Ventura County District Attorney's Office and received the prosecutor of the year award. Judge DeNoce received his college degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder and obtained his law degree from Pepperdine University School of Law.
As a private attorney, Judge DeNoce had the unique accomplishment of working with local prosecutors and law enforcement to exonerate a person wrongfully sentenced to life for murder and received local and state awards for having done so. A book about this case was recently published and referred to by former District Attorney Michael D. Bradbury as "a book that should be at the top of every prosecutor's reading list."
Mandatory Settlement Conferences: Judge DeNoce presides over all of the Civil Mandatory Settlement Conferences (MSCs) for Ventura County. The MSCs are conducted remotely by way of Zoom. This is intended to provide a safe and convenient means for civil case settlement. After an MSC is set in your case, counsel will need to file a Remote Mandatory Settlement Form (linked below) which provides the court with email addresses where Zoom invitations can be sent. This form must be submitted to with the court at least 5 days prior to your remote MSC along with your MSC Settlement Conference Statement. (See Cal. Rules Ct, rule 3.1380(c).) Although MSCs will be conducted remotely, the same confidentiality rules apply as with in person MSCs. No audio, video, or photographic portion of the remote MSC may be captured, recorded or preserved. (Cal. Rules Ct, rule 1.150; Penal Code §632.)
To access the above referenced Remote MSC form and procedures applicable to remote/Zoom Mandatory Settlement Conferences, please click here.
____________________________________________________________ This is the personal website of Judge Kevin G. DeNoce which is intended to assist attorneys, litigants, and the public in obtaining information about Judge DeNoce. The "Court Website," "Court Public Notices," "Ventura Superior Court Press Releases," "eCourt," and "Civil Court Rules & Orders" linked web pages on this site are published by and contained on the Ventura County Superior Court's official secure website.
