Judge Harry Jay Ford, III received his B.U.S. in social and behavioral science, magna cum laude, from the University of Utah in 1982, and his J.D. from the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law in 1985. While in law school, he served as the editor of the Journal of Contemporary Law and the Journal of Energy Law and Policy from 1983-1985. After passing the California bar in 1985, he worked as an associate at Adams Duque & Hazeltine from 1985-1987. Thereafter, he joined Tyre Kamins Katz & Granof Law Corporation first as an associate then as a shareholder from 1987-2005. While in private practice, he focused mainly on representing both plaintiffs and defendants in complex business litigation, but also practiced in a wide variety of areas. He then served as a court commissioner from 2005 until 2013 when he was appointed to the bench by Governor Jerry Brown. He is a democrat.