JAMS Neutral - Judge Kough previously served on the Los Angeles Superior Court as one of the original seven complex litigation judges and earned a reputation for fairness, efficiency and thoroughness in handling the most difficult and contentious cases.

Since joining JAMS in 2002 Judge Kough has arbitrated a wide range of disputes that span a broad spectrum of legal issues across several industries.  She is able to draw on her experience to craft fair and well-reasoned awards.

Judge Kough is also an experienced special master and discovery referee who brings in-depth and hands-on knowledge to managing cases and is able to provide litigators, their clients, and the courts with the expertise needed to quickly and efficiently resolve cases.

Judge Kough has arbitrated hundreds of matters, including in the fields of complex business/commercial disputes (both domestic and international), entertainment, construction defect, environmental, insurance, healthcare, cannabis industry, partnership dissolutions and professional liability.

Representative Matters

• Business/Commercial
• Served as panel arbitrator on dispute between luxury Los Angeles hotels
• Served as arbitrator in international dispute over sale of beauty products
• Served as arbitrator in international dispute over sale of food products
• Served as arbitrator in international dispute over sale of import business
• Served as arbitrator in international dispute over shareholder rights
• Served as arbitrator in dispute alleging elder abuse
• Served as arbitrator in dispute between independent physicians association and management company
• Served as arbitrator in dispute over ownership and management of cannabis business
• Served as arbitrator in dispute over participation in venture capital firm
• Served as arbitrator in dispute over ownership of recovery facility
• Served as arbitrator in disputes over sale of skilled nursing facility
• Served as arbitrator in dispute over contracts with national logistics company
• Construction Defect
• Served as arbitrator in dispute over construction of luxury resort
• Served as arbitrator in disputes over sale of allegedly defective residential property
• Entertainment & Sports
• Served as arbitrator in dispute over revenue generated by hit TV series
• Served as arbitrator in disputes over financing of motion pictures
• Served as arbitrator in disputes over compensation for production services
• Served as arbitrator in dispute over creative control of/compensation for reality TV show
• Environmental
• Served as panel arbitrator in dispute over liability for environmental remediation at industrial site in Kentucky
• Served as arbitrator in dispute over liability for environmental remediation at site in Los Angeles
• Served as arbitrator in dispute over liability for environmental remediation in Santa Clarita Valley
• Served as panel arbitrator in dispute over liability for environmental remediation at sites in multiple states
• Served as CCP 638 referee in dispute over environmental remediation at site in Orange County
• Health Care
• Served as arbitrator in disputes over sale of skilled nursing facilities and medical practices
• Served as arbitrator in dispute between IPA and management company
• Served as arbitrator in disputes over hospital reimbursement
• Served as arbitrator in disputes over sale of medical equipment and facilities
• Served as arbitrator in disputes over medical partnership dissolution
• Insurance
• Served as trial judge on complex insurance cases stemming from the 1994 Northridge earthquake
• Served as referee on commercial insurance dispute involving bad faith claim
• Served as panel arbitrator in disputes over coverage for settlement of lawsuit
• Other Matters
• Served on federal panel determining compensation for victims of the US embassy bombings in Kenya
• Served on bankruptcy panel reviewing compensation for wildfire victims
• Special Master/Discovery Referee
• Served as Special Master in Celador v. Disney, dispute over revenue from TV show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, monitoring expert depositions, making recommendations on witness exclusion motions and Daubert motions
• Served as Special Master in Garcia v. City of Los Angeles, dispute over City’s seizure and destruction of unhoused’s property
• Served as Discovery Referee in business interference matter involving large competing shopping centers with e-discovery issues
• Served as Discovery Referee in construction defect lawsuits
• Served as Discovery Referee in lawsuit over real estate management company
• Served as Discovery Referee in numerous matters where Court determined the relationship between counsel merited the appointment of a referee

Honors, Memberships, and Professional Activities

• Member, Academy of Court Appointed Masters (ACAM), 2006-2020
• Member, California Judges Association (CJA)(Executive Board Member 1995-1997), 1989-2022
• Member, National Association of Women Judges (NAWJ)(Chair, 2000 Annual Conference Committee), 1989-2022
• Author, “Judicial References,” California Lawyer magazine, August 2013
• Author, “Volunteer Vacations,” The Bench magazine, Summer 2006
• Co-Author, “Judicial Reference: A Forgotten Tool,” The Recorder, October 7, 2013
• Author, “The Uses of Arbitration/Judicial Reference in Complex Healthcare Litigation,” Health Care Matters, Fall 2017
• Panelist, “Learning From the Masters: How to Manage and Settle Your Complex Cases,” ABA Section of Dispute Resolution, October 15, 2013

Background and Education

• Judge, Superior Court (Complex Litigation program and “fast track” civil), 1997-2002
• Judge, Municipal Court, Los Angeles Judicial District, 1989-1997
• General Counsel, Pacific Triangle Management Corporation, 1986-1988
• Partner, O'Loughlin, Kough & Katz, 1983-1986
• Associate, Loeb & Loeb LLP, 1982-1983
• Deputy City Attorney, City of Los Angeles, 1979-1982
• J.D., University of California, Los Angeles School of Law
• M.A., Sociology, California State University, Fullerton
• B.A., Sociology, magna cum laude, Whitworth College, Spokane, WA