About Myrlys (Pronounced Meer-Liss)
Commissioner Myrlys Stockdale Coleman is a judicial officer with two decades of experience in the law and nearly 10 years working in courts. She began volunteering as a Temporary Judge in Northern California courts in 2013 and in 2019, she was appointed by Superior Court Judges to serve full-time as a Commissioner performing the judicial duties of a Judge.
She is a Family Law Commissioner for Sacramento County Superior Court at the Ridgeway Family Relations Courthouse where, years ago, she was a self-represented litigant handling her own family law matter. That experience inspired her to go to law school. She now presides over cases involving child custody, child support and spousal support, domestic violence, divorce and complex property division, and she does so with understanding, fairness and integrity.
Myrlys’ experience includes serving as a Commissioner in Napa County, where she presided over family law matters, child support matters, restraining orders as well as matters involving child welfare and juvenile justice. She is an adjunct professor of law at the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, and a member of the faculty teaching new commissioners about child support and family law.
Before being appointed to serve as a Commissioner, Myrlys owned a law firm and practiced family law in Sacramento and neighboring counties. During this time, she served as a Family Law Special Master and court-appointed Minor’s Counsel for Sacramento County Superior Court. Myrlys has been committed to assuring the well-being of children and focusing on families during much of her legal career. Myrlys is a Certified Family Law Specialist, Certified by the State Bar of California. The law is her third career, and she served for nearly 20 years as a public servant working for the State of California in various capacities. She worked by day and attended law school at night while raising her two children. She was a single parent.
Myrlys has been active in numerous legal and community service organizations in Sacramento including the Anthony M. Kennedy American Inn of Court, and serving as a Board member for the Women Lawyers of Sacramento, the Wiley Manuel Bar Association, and the Sacramento Children’s Fund. She volunteers as a mentor to law school students, and speaks to youth groups about education and career opportunities. Myrlys is actively involved in Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and is a graduate of the Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Sacramento program. Both her parents were public servants; her father was a pilot in the United States Air Force and her mother worked for the State of California. Myrlys graduated from Howard University and Lincoln Law School of Sacramento. Myrlys is married and she has two children and two grandchildren as well as two grand-puppies.
Myrlys’ Legal Career
Early Memories