News
Court Announces Retirement of Hon. Judge Mattice
Fairfield, California – The Superior Court of California, County of Solano announces the retirement of the Hon. Michael Mattice after more than sixteen years on the bench, effective March 26, 2020. Judge Mattice was appointed to the Solano Superior Court by Governor Gray Davis in 2003. He has served in Family, Criminal, Probate, and Civil assignments, also serving as the Supervising Family Law Judge and later in the Court’s Appellate Division.
Judge Mattice served in the U.S. Navy from 1967-1970 as a Hospital Corpsman. In 1969, he transferred to the U.S.M.C. for service as a combat medic in Vietnam, where he was awarded two Purple Hearts. After returning from the Navy, he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley, where he was invited to join the Phi Beta Kappa Society, Alpha of California. He received his Juris Doctorate from Hastings College of Law in 1976.
Following graduation from law school, Judge Mattice entered private practice in Fairfield, where he served as an associate in the firm of McPherson & Barnett (1977-1983); McPherson, Barnett & Mattice as a general partner (1983-1992) and Barnett-Mattice as a sole practitioner (1992-2000). In 2001, Judge Mattice joined the Solano County District Attorney’s Office, serving as a Deputy District Attorney assigned to the Consumer and Environmental Protection Unit.
Judge Mattice has served as faculty for California’s Center for Judicial Education and Research (CJER), teaching Bench Demeanor for Pro Tem Judges, and numerous courses on Case Flow Management and on Family Law. He is a member of the editorial board for California Litigation, and serves as a Judicial Advisor for the Civil Jury Project at NYU School of Law. He has authored numerous publications and is considered an expert in the fields of case flow management and family law.
Judge Mattice has been an active member of the community. Before becoming a judge, he was a member of the Solano County Bar Association, and its President in 1993. He was a member of the Rotary Club of Fairfield-Suisun from 1978-1993, serving as President for 1984-1985. He served on the Mayor’s Blue Ribbon Committee for Fairfield and Suisun Schools, and on the Board of Directors for the Solano Land Trust (2001-2003). He was co-chairperson of Fairfield’s “Yes On Measure H” Committee in 2002; and a trustee for the Solano County Public Law Library Board, serving as chair for two years.
As stated by Judge Mattice, “It is the greatest honor of my professional life to have served alongside the hardworking, diligent and ethical judges and staff of the Solano Superior Court. Our Court’s record of legal accuracy in adjudication, fair outcomes, and efficiency and service is superb, and we are always improving. The justice system in Solano County is in very good hands! It is also my great honor to have contributed to the advancement of the legal system, by teaching judges and lawyers all around California and once at New York University School of Law’s Civil Jury Project, by preparing my own legal articles and editing those of other authors for publication, and by working on numerous statewide judicial branch committees and work
groups.”