About Anthony J.
Anthony J. Kimbirk built his legal foundation at Western State College of Law at Argosy University, where he earned his J.D. in 1998. He entered the profession at a time when courts and public agencies were adapting to new procedural and evidentiary challenges. The law school years gave him a grounding in trial procedure and appellate practice, the two threads that would recur throughout his career.
Early on Kimbirk moved into appellate work. In 2000 he served as a law clerk to Justice Thomas Hollenhorst at the California Court of Appeal. That clerkship exposed him to complex briefing and opinion drafting, and to the deliberative side of judging. He worked on legal research and assisted in preparing opinions that clarified statutory and constitutional questions for trial courts.
In 2001 Kimbirk took a position as a lawyer with the San Bernardino County Public Defender. There he handled a broad range of criminal matters. He represented clients in arraignments, hearings and trials, and he prepared appellate filings when cases required review. The job demanded both courtroom advocacy and case management, often under tight deadlines.
Kimbirk moved into a supervisory role in 2008 when he became a supervising lawyer for the Riverside County Law Offices of the Public Defender. In that capacity he oversaw other attorneys and participated in training and mentoring. He managed caseload assignments and helped shape strategies for handling serious felony and misdemeanor matters. The role required balancing courtroom appearances with administrative responsibilities and providing guidance to less-experienced lawyers.
Throughout his career Kimbirk has worked in public defense environments where judgment calls matter and practical legal skills are tested daily. His background combines appellate exposure from the Court of Appeal clerkship and front-line trial experience from county public defender offices. He has navigated the procedural work of appeals and the tactical demands of trials, and he has experience supervising staff in a busy public agency.
Kimbirk maintains a practice that centers on criminal defense and appellate work, continuing to represent clients and to handle both trial-level litigation and post-conviction matters in the years since his public defender service.
