Rafael A. Arreola

Rafael A. Arreola was born on March 18, 1941, in Catrina, Jalisco, Mexico, and immigrated to California in 1954 at age 13 with his parents — beginning a remarkable journey from a young Mexican immigrant to one of the most distinguished Latino jurists in California history.

After earning his Associate of Arts degree at Riverside City College, he went on to earn both a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. He then pursued law at Stanford University, earning his law degree in 1974.

He began his legal career with Alameda County Legal Aid and later San Diego Legal Aid, representing people who might not otherwise have had meaningful access to legal representation. In 1981, Governor Jerry Brown appointed him to the California bench in San Diego — one of the first Mexican-American judges in the region.

Judge Arreola served on the bench for more than two decades, retiring in 2007 but continuing to hear cases as an Assigned Judge in San Diego, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties. Throughout his career, he mentored generations of Latino attorneys, judges, students, and community leaders — helping open doors that had historically been closed to Mexican-American professionals.