SANTA ANA

State Court of Appeal Justice Edward J. Wallin, one of four judges named in late 1982 to the then-newly created court division in Santa Ana, said Friday that he is stepping down to take a position at a private mediation company.

“I’m young enough to still have time for one more career,” said Wallin, 56, who will retire Feb. 16. A jurist for more than 20 years, Wallin will work both as a private judge and mediator at JAMS/Endispute Inc. in Orange, the nation’s largest private mediation company.

Wallin was named to the appellate court division in late 1982 by former Gov. Edmund G. “Jerry” Brown. For the previous four years, he was an Orange County Superior Court Judge.

Among his more high-profile opinions as an appellate judge was the 1996 holding that dismissed all civil charges against Orange County supervisors accused of “willful misconduct” for allegedly negligent financial decisions that led to the county’s historic bankruptcy.

In 1994, the Orange County Bar Assn. awarded him its Franklin G. West Lifetime Achievement Award. That same year, the Consumer Attorney’s Assn. of Los Angeles presented him with the Roger Traynor Award as Appellate Justice of the Year.