Judge Bios

Judge Judith N. Macaluso was sworn in as an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on Friday, September 5, 2003. Superior Court Chief Judge Rufus G. King, III, presided.

Judge Macaluso was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on October 19, 1944, to Jack and Ruth Margolis. She has resided in the District of Columbia for 36 years. Judge Macaluso received her B.A. degree in English

Judge Judith N. Macaluso was sworn in as an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on Friday, September 5, 2003. Superior Court Chief Judge Rufus G. King, III, presided.

Judge Macaluso was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on October 19, 1944, to Jack and Ruth Margolis. She has resided in the District of Columbia for 36 years. Judge Macaluso received her B.A. degree in English
Literature from the University of Maryland in 1972 and her J.D., magna cum laude, from Howard University School of Law in 1975. Upon graduation from law school she served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable David L. Cahoon, Chief Judge of the Maryland State Circuit Court for Montgomery County, Maryland. After her clerkship, she briefly pursued private practice as a sole practitioner and then began a career as a trial and appellate attorney with the United States Government.

From 1978 to 1985, she was an attorney with the Solicitor’s Office of the United States Department of Labor handling cases arising under the Mine Safety and Health Act and Occupational Safety and Health Act. For her last five years at the Department of Labor, she specialized in appellate practice, defending OSHA’s regulations and civil prosecutions in the United States Courts of Appeals. Among her noteworthy cases was successful defense of OSHA’s hearing conservation standard, a regulation 10 years in the making designed to save an estimated 2.2 million employees from hearing loss.

In 1986, she joined the Civil Division, Torts Branch of the United States Department of Justice. There she worked primarily as a defense attorney in toxic tort cases, complex litigation that typically involved hundreds of plaintiffs alleging personal injury from exposure to chemicals. She was responsible for handling challenging issues of case management, as well as legal and scientific issues in such areas as toxicology, epidemiology, psychiatry, and medical injury cause-in-fact. The controversial nature of several of her cases, including for example the Fernald School Cases in which orphan children were fed irradiated oatmeal, provided additional litigation challenges.

Judge Macaluso also handled a variety of contract cases while at the Department of Justice. Most notable was her successful defense of the concessions contract for Yosemite National Park, which at that time was the largest such contract in the history of the Department of the Interior. In her career with the Federal Government, she received 18 awards for excellent professional performance.

Her Bar memberships include the Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia and Maryland; United States Court of Federal Claims; United States Courts of Appeals in several Circuits; and the United States Supreme Court. In addition, she is on the Board of Directors of the American Bar Association’s National Conference of Specialized Court Judges; she is President of the William B. Bryant Chapter, American Inns of Court; and she is an active and contributing member of the National Association of Women Judges.

In 1997, she was appointed Hearing Commissioner, now Magistrate Judge, of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. In her 5-1/2 years in this position, she served in all three Divisions of the Court-Civil, Criminal and Family. In the Family Division, now the Family Court, she presided over thousands of proceedings involving child abuse, child neglect, juvenile delinquency, determination of paternity, award of child support, divorce, and review of services provided mentally retarded citizens. She served on the DC Superior Court’s Mental Health and Mental Retardation Work Group and prepared several editions of the Court’s Mental Retardation Bench Book.

Judge Macaluso brings a particular expertise in mental health issues to the Family Court. At the Department of Justice she specialized in such issues and was designated a Civil Division resource for other attorneys to consult on psychiatric, psychological, and neuropsychological issues. She has maintained a concentration in this area at the Superior Court, serving on task forces and committees to improve the Court’s handling of mentally ill defendants. Her contributions in this area are enhanced by service on the Boards of Directors of mental health organizations. She was Board Member and Secretary of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, District of Columbia Chapter. In addition, she was founding Chairperson of the CarePoint Advisory Board, District of Columbia Department of Mental Health. This citizens’ review board oversaw the CarePoint program, which was a successful pilot program for improving care of mentally ill consumers.

Judge Macaluso has also made notable contributions to the Court as a creative member of the Judicial Education Committee and author of bench books on Preliminary Hearings and Mental Retardation.

She is married to Vincent G. Macaluso and is the proud parent of a son, Joel; three stepchildren, Antoinette, Corinne, and Adam Macaluso; and four grandchildren, Jennifer Kenealy and Kaylyn, Tyler, and Kristina Macaluso.