Ken Torre is the Executive Officer of the Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa. The Contra Costa County Superior Court is a unified countywide Superior court consisting of 34 judges, 12 commissioners and 400 clerk’s office personnel. Torre leads the administrative operations of a $60 million, complex, geographically diverse court.
Mr. Torre began his career in public service as a Communications Specialist in the Air Force in 1966. After having obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from the University of San Francisco, he embarked on his journey in Court Administration, serving first as the Calendar Manager for the San Mateo County Superior Court in Redwood City, California. He promoted to the Assistant Executive Officer of the Court in 1981 and was appointed by the judges of the Court as the Executive Officer in 1985.Torre obtained his Master of Arts Degree in Public Administration from the University of Southern California while serving in the San Mateo Superior Court.
Mr. Torre was appointed by the judges of the four Municipal Courts in Contra Costa County to the post of Countywide Municipal Court Administrator in 1996. Within the year, he was appointed to the new post of Administrator of the Coordinated Trial Courts of Contra Costa, leading the transition from three separate administrative organizations to a fully unified administrative structure serving the Superior and Municipal Courts of Contra Costa. He was ultimately appointed to his current position as the Executive Officer of the Unified Contra Costa County Superior Court in June 1998.
In addition to his responsibilities at the Court, Torre holds the part-time position of Director of Judicial Administration Programs, California State University at Sacramento (CSUS). Appointed as the Director of this new program in 2007, his goal is to create a nationally recognized Master’s Program in Judicial Administration. In keeping with CSUS’s commitment to public service, he hopes to expand the public’s awareness of the field of Judicial Administration as an outstanding, challenging and fulfilling career path. Torre will draw upon the broad and rich experience of the many dedicated Judicial Branch leaders to bring an unparalleled level of higher learning to the Program.
Mr. Torre, having been a leader in the Field of Court Administration for over three decades, is looking forward to the newest facet of his career as the Director of Judicial Administration Programs.