UCLA, 1983
• 1981 First Team Academic All-America®
• 1982 First Team Academic All-America®
Cormac Carney was inducted into the CoSIDA Academic All-America® Hall of Fame in 2005.
Seldom sitting on the bench during his years as a UCLA football standout, Cormac Carney has now made a career out of sitting on the bench presiding over the courtroom as a federal judge.
Carney grew up in Long Beach, Calif., and attended the United States Air Force Academy for one year before transferring to UCLA for his sophomore year in 1980. As a wide receiver, Carney proved to be the perfect fit for the powerhouse Bruins.
Carney led the team in receptions during his three seasons as a starter, helping the Bruins post record a 26-7-2 record, including a victory over Michigan in the 1983 Rose Bowl. UCLA climbed all the way to No. 5 in the national rankings.
During the 1981 and '82 seasons, Carney was named an Academic All-American and became the first Bruin to earn the honor twice. Also, during his junior and senior seasons, he was an All-Pacific-10 Conference selection, was selected for the Academic All-America football team and was named one of the NCAA’s top eight student athletes for 1982-1983.
Carney finished his career as the Bruins’ all-time leading receiver with more than 100 receptions and nearly 2,000 yards. He graduated in 1983 with an impressive 3.51 grade-point average while earning a degree in psychology.
Carney spent one season with the Memphis Showboats of the United States Football League (USFL) and was courted to play in the NFL by the San Francisco 49ers, but declined that offer to attend Harvard Law School.
In 1987, the Harvard Law grad began his professional career as an associate with the law firm Latham and Watkins, headquartered in Los Angeles. After a four-year stint there, Carney moved on to work for the California-based international firm O’Melveny & Myers for 11 years. During that time, he gained partner status as a business litigator, focusing on real estate, partnership, lender liability, environmental, intellectual property and insurance coverage disputes.
After fulfilling an appointment by Governor Gray Davis as Orange Superior Court Judge, in 2003 President George W. Bush gave Carney a lifetime appointment to Federal Judge to U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. In addition to his legalcareer, he has donated significant time to speaking and participating in numerous events sponsored by organizations in the legal community.