Philip J. Bonoli, former co-managing partner at Woodland Hills firm BG Law LLP, has been appointed Ventura County Superior Court Commissioner. He will preside over child support and restraining order cases.
A longtime Woodland Hills litigator has moved from private practice to the bench. , former co-managing partner at , was appointed as a Ventura County Superior Court Commissioner in June 2026. Bonoli concluded his nearly ten-year tenure at the firm on June 5, 2026, and took the oath of office during a ceremony on June 8, 2026. The appointment marks a significant career shift for one of Southern California's most decorated employment and commercial lawyers.
Bonoli spent his last decade in private practice at BG Law LLP, a business law firm with offices in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Denver. The firm has a Woodland Hills presence on Ventura Boulevard. At BG Law, Bonoli built a litigation practice covering employment disputes, commercial litigation, and wage-and-hour class actions. He is admitted to practice before all four U.S. District Courts in California, the Ninth Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court.
Bonoli also served on the Merit Selection Panel for the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. That panel evaluates candidates for federal magistrate judgeships. Few attorneys are asked to help select judges. Fewer still go on to become one.
Bonoli is assigned to Department 34 at the Hall of Justice in Ventura, according to the Ventura County Superior Court. In that role, he presides over child support matters and handles domestic violence and gun violence restraining orders. Court commissioners in California have the authority to hear certain court matters and issue orders, though they are not full judges.
The Ventura Superior Court judges select court commissioners. Bonoli's appointment was announced by the court on June 5, 2026.
Bonoli's legal career has drawn repeated recognition. He was named to the Los Angeles Business Journal's "Top 100 Lawyers" in 2026 and 2022. He appeared on the Los Angeles and San Francisco Daily Journal's "Top Labor & Employment Lawyers" list in 2025 and 2024. He has been selected to "Best Lawyers in America" every year since 2023 and to Southern California "Super Lawyers" every year since 2014.
His commentary on employment law has appeared in Forbes and The Hollywood Reporter.
Bonoli credited his time at BG Law for preparing him for the judicial role.
"I would not be taking the bench without BG Law. For nearly ten years, this Firm gave me everything a lawyer needs to grow: challenging, high-stakes cases, the trust to lead them, and colleagues who pushed me to be better every single day."
Steve Gubner, Managing Partner of BG Law, called the appointment a milestone for the firm.
"Phil's appointment to the bench is a milestone moment in our Firm's history. His record speaks for itself. Phil is a trial lawyer who tried case after case to verdict, an appellate advocate who prevailed before the Ninth Circuit and the California Court of Appeal, and a litigator recognized year after year among the very best in California."
Bonoli earned his B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Southern California in 1992. He received his J.D. from Chicago-Kent College of Law at the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1995. He worked at several private law firms starting in 2004 before joining BG Law.
This article was generated with AI assistance.