About Karen
Commissioner Karen V. Clopton is an award-winning trailblazer in human and civil rights, and a nationally recognized leader, speaker and author in corporate, legal, and judicial ethics. Passionate about the elimination of bias in highly regulated corporate and public environments, she drives policy and legal change. As a member of both European and African American families, she has profound understanding and empathy for people grappling with the cultural and socio-economic issues impacting fairness in our society.
Commissioner Clopton led the State Bar of California’s Commission on the Revision of the Rules of Professional Conduct, the Council on Access and Fairness, and the Task Force on Admissions Regulation Reform Implementation. She serves on the Editorial Board of the California Labor and Employment Law Review and chaired the State Bar’s Labor and Employment Law Section’s Executive Committee.
Recognized by numerous bi-partisan government and civic leaders, Commissioner Clopton served as a political appointee over three decades for numerous administrations, often as the first African American. For nine years she served as the first African American California Public Utilities Commission Chief Administrative Law Judge. At the California Department of Corporations, she was the first African American General Counsel. For the San Francisco State University Foundation, she was the first African American Chief of Operations and Corporate Counsel. Clopton was also the Port of San Francisco’s first Chief of Operations, managing a 45-million budget and overseeing security after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. She fuels her passion for equal access for women, girls and young people through philanthropic endeavors such as acting as President of the League of Women Voters of San Francisco, National Legislative Chair for Jack and Jill of America, serving on the board of the American Red Cross and numerous additional political and philanthropic endeavors.
After graduating cum laude in Political Science and Hispanic Studies from Vassar College, Clopton earned her Juris Doctor from Antioch University School of Law. Clopton also won the prestigious and highly competitive Maguire Fellowship for postgraduate study in international and comparative labor management relations at the London School of Economics, and the ILO in Geneva, Switzerland. She speaks English and French and is fluent in Spanish.
Achievements
Awards & Honors
American Bar Association
Robert B. Yegge Award 2017
Mary C. Lawton Award 2010
San Francisco Planning and Urban Research (SPUR)
Silver SPUR Lifetime Achievement Award 2013
California Association of Black Lawyers
Judicial Award of Excellence 2012
National Coalition of 100 Black Women, San Francisco Chapter
Trail Blazer Award 2011
March into National History Month, San Francisco Chapter
History Maker Award 2011
San Francisco Commission on Women
Women Who Make a Difference Award 1998
California State Bar, CYLA
Distinguished Service to the Public and Profession 1994
Bar Admissions
United States Supreme Court
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
Northern District of California, United States District Court
State Bar of California
State Bar of California Leadership Appointments
2000-2018: Editorial Board, California Labor and Employment Law Review
2015-2017: Commission for the Revision of the Rules of Professional Conduct
2010-2015: Council on Access and Fairness (Chair 2014)
2013-2014: Task Force on Admissions Regulation and Reform Implementation
2000-2010: Executive Committee, State Bar of California Labor and Employment Law Section: Education Chair, Treasurer, Secretary, Vice Chair, and Chair
1991-1994: Board of Legal Specialization, Editor Digest