Nanci Nishimura

Nanci E. Nishimura is a partner at the law firm of Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy in California with offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York.  She serves in a leadership role in complex litigation involving business and antitrust, and has appeared before the United States Supreme Court in a precedent-setting privacy case.  She represents dozens of public entities in state and federal courts, handles mediation and arbitration, and community-based pro bono work.

Ms. Nishimura is the Co-Chair and founding member of the Leaders Forum, a bi-partisan coalition of c-suite executives and thought leaders that serves to cultivate, promote and lead Asian American Pacific Islanders and other diverse communities at the highest levels of public, private and philanthropic sectors in the U.S. and globally.

She serves on the California Commission on Judicial Performance, an independent, 11-member body empowered to protect the public from judicial misconduct.  First appointed by former Governor Jerry Brown in 2011, she was reappointed by Governor Gavin Newsom, and from March 2018 to March 2020, served two terms as the first woman non-judge to be elected Chair. In 2019, Governor Newsom appointed her to the California Uniform Law Commission.

In 2021 she was again named one of the Top Women Lawyers in California after first being honored in 2010.  Her commitment to education and the community includes serving as a Trustee of the Los Angeles-based California Science Center Foundation, a Trustee and Commissioner of the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, Rotary San Mateo and other legal and service organizations.  She created Storytime with Argyle and Abby Rabbit, an interactive program with live bunnies to teach kids to read, respect animals, and build self-esteem.

She received her B.A and M.A. from the University of Southern California, and attended Waseda University in Japan. While completing an M.A. in International Relations, she studied at the United Nations in Switzerland, followed by several years in business development for international clients.  She received a J.D. from The Catholic University in Washington, D.C., while clerking at the International Trade Commission and the U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corporation.  She also served as a Legislative Aide to U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye of Hawaii.