Who Is Susan Illston? Age, Biography and Wiki
Susan Illston was born on June 24, 1948, making her 76 years old in 2025. Throughout her distinguished legal career, she has served as a U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of California, appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1994. Illston has presided over several high-profile cases, contributing to the evolution of federal law in various sectors, including technology and intellectual property.
| Occupation | Lawyers |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | June 24, 1948 |
| Age | 76 Years |
| Birth Place | Tokyo, Japan |
| Horoscope | Cancer |
| Country | Japan |
Popularity
Susan Illston's Popularity over time
Height, Weight & Measurements
While specific details regarding her height and weight are not widely publicized, Susan Illston maintains a professional appearance consistent with her role in the judiciary. At 76, she exemplifies a commitment to health and well-being, which is significant for anyone in her line of work.
Family, Dating & Relationship Status
Susan Illston has chosen to keep much of her personal life, including her family and relationships, private. There is limited information regarding her current dating status or whether she has a boyfriend or husband. What is widely known is her commitment to her work and her standing as a respected figure in the legal community.
Net Worth and Salary
Susan Illston's net worth is estimated to be around $3 million in 2025. Judges in the U.S. usually earn a substantial salary; as a federal judge, Illston's annual salary has been estimated to be over $200,000. Her financial success stems not only from her judicial duties but also from various speaking engagements and legal consulting roles.
Career, Business and Investments
Illston's legal career spans several decades, with a strong focus on federal law. Her most impactful rulings have had lasting effects on the technology and intellectual property sectors. Aside from her role as a judge, she has been involved in multiple judicial committees and has contributed to the legal community through lectures and seminars. While not known for public business ventures or investments, her dedication to law inherently contributes to her ongoing career success.
In February 2004, Illston ruled in 321 Studios v. Metro Goldwyn Mayer Studios, Inc. that the company's software, which was intended, according to the company, to allow consumers to make backup copies of DVDs by "circumventing" so-called "copy protection" methods, was illegal under Federal law.
She issued an injunction at the behest of several Hollywood studios and ordered 321 Studios to stop selling their product. However, despite finding that the software violated Federal law, she ruled that copies made by consumers (of their own legally purchased DVDs) were, in fact, legal.
She wrote in her opinion, "It is the technology itself at issue, not the uses to which the copyrighted material may be put...Legal downstream use of the copyrighted material by customers is not a defense to the software manufacturer's violation of the provisions [of copyright law]."
Social Network
While Susan Illston maintains a low public profile, she is recognized within legal circles and has a presence on professional networking sites such as LinkedIn. Given her influential role in the judiciary, many followers in the legal community appreciate her insights and contributions.
The Bureau of Land Management was required, as a result of the lawsuit by the Center for Biological Diversity, to prepare a new inventory of routes and to reconsider the routes that would be included in the revised network. That process concluded with a Record of Decision filed by the BLM in the Federal Register on October 4, 2019.
That Record of Decision expanded the West Mojave Route Network Project (WMRNP) by approximately 20% to 5997 miles. In response, the Center for Biological Diversity filed another lawsuit in September 2021 opposing the expansion of the network and the resulting degradation of the environment.
The new case was also heard by Judge Illston, who issued her decision on October 16, 2024. The result was similar to the result of the previous case.
Judge Illston wrote in her opinion that "the Court concludes that the BLM’s 2019 OHV route network does not comply [with] the minimization criteria because the record does not affirmatively demonstrate how the BLM designated OHV routes with the objective of minimizing impacts on the desert tortoise, the Lane Mountain milk-vetch, and other resourc
es, and because the BLM improperly relied on optional, post-designation 'mitigation' measures to satisfy its obligation to designate OHV routes that complied with the regulatory criteria." The Center for Biological Diversity and the Bureau of Land Management began to negotiate a settlement to the lawsuit in November 2024, which is currently ongoing
(as of April 2025).
Education
Susan Illston earned her Bachelor's degree from Harvard University in 1970, later obtaining her Juris Doctor from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law in 1974. Her educational background laid the foundation for her impactful legal career, and she often underscores the importance of quality education in her lectures and public statements.
She graduated from Duke University, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in 1970, and she received a Juris Doctor from Stanford Law School in 1973. Prior to her appointment, Illston worked in private practice first as an associate, then as a partner, at Cotchett, Illston & Pitre in Burlingame, California from 1973 to 1995.
