Judge Porter served as a Magistrate Judge in the Southern District of California from 1991 until her retirement March 2012. She was presiding judge 1997-2002 during which time she helped establish a new courthouse in Imperial Valley, CA. Judge Porter is currently on limited recall to the courts to districts wherein she resides. Prior to her appointment to the federal bench, she was a civil trial practitioner for 14 years. She is active on the local, national and international levels in legal organizations including Master of the Inns of Court for 21 years, founding member and advisor to the International Association for Court Administration, President of the Federal Magistrate Judges Association (2003-04), officer of the San Diego County Bar Association (1990-91), and President of the San Diego Trial Lawyers Association (1988). She has lectured extensively on trial practice, electronic discovery and international ADR and case management. Judge Porter was inducted into the San Diego Trial Lawyer Hall of Fame in 2004, and was named Distinguished Alumni of the University of San Diego School of Law for 2015. Her primary court affiliation is the U.S. District Court Southern District of California located in San Diego.