Katherine Parker

Civil Litigation, Federal Civil Practice, Alternative Dispute Resolution, Negotiation/Mediation, Legal Ethics

Prior to joining the faculty in 2025, Professor Parker served as Chief of the Civil Division at the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California. As Civil Chief, she supervised over 35 attorneys and staff in their work litigating affirmative and defensive civil cases on behalf of the United States, federal agencies, and federal officers. Areas of practice included personal injury, medical malpractice, immigration, employment discrimination, civil rights, administrative law, Freedom of Information/Privacy, and the False Claims, Controlled Substances, and Servicemembers Civil Relief Acts. Before becoming a supervisor, Professor Parker personally handled numerous high stakes civil matters as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, and she gained extensive experience with discovery, depositions, motions, expert witnesses, trials, appeals, and settlement negotiations. She began her practice as a litigation associate at the San Diego office of Morrison Foerster, with a focus on patent litigation and general commercial litigation. 

Professor Parker is also a certified mediator, and has mediated or co-mediated personal injury and commercial litigation matters. 

Throughout her practice, Professor Parker has been dedicated to mentoring other lawyers and fostering professionalism and excellence in the San Diego legal community. She is currently a member of the San Diego County Bar Association’s Legal Ethics committee, and regularly authors columns on legal ethics in that capacity. She is also a member of the San Diego County Bar Association’s Leadership Development Academy subcommittee. She is a Past President of the San Diego Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, and she continues to serve on the Chapter’s Advisory Board.  Professor Parker has remained engaged with USD Law since her graduation, and has enjoyed judging oral arguments, conducting mock interviews, and meeting current and prospective students. In 2019 she joined the Law Alumni Board, and from 2023-2025 she served as Law Alumni Board President. Professor Parker is a recipient of the Tom Homann Law Association’s Co-President’s Award and the Federal Bar Association’s national Robyn J. Spalter Award for Outstanding Achievement. In 2025, the San Diego Business Journal listed her among the Top 100 Women of Influence in the Law. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of San Diego School of Law, where she was a member of the Moot Court National Team and the San Diego Law Review. She was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa at the University of Redlands.