Candace Carroll

Candace M. Carroll was born in Columbus, Ohio in 1944. She grew up in Washington DC, and put herself through George Washington University (Phi Beta Kappa) and attended Duke Law School on scholarship, graduating Order of the Coif.

Candace clerked on the D. C Circuit and became an appellate lawyer with the National Labor Relations Board. She married fellow attorney Len Simon, with three sons.

In 1983 the family moved to San Diego, and Candace joined Sullivan Hill (now Fennemore) where she remained for the rest of her career. She continued to focus on appellate law, and did bankruptcy work as well.

Candace’s leadership extended beyond the legal system. She served on the Board of the San Diego ACLU and was later elected to the National ACLU Board. She chaired Senator Barbara Boxer’s Judicial Advisory Committee for seven years. She was President of the San Diego County Bar Association, and later California Women Lawyers, and served on the Boards of the ABA’s Immigration Justice Project and San Diego Volunteer Lawyers. Ms. Carroll taught at Duke and USD for over a decade. She was an opera lover and helped save the San Diego Opera, serving on the new Opera board until her death. She volunteered to read to inmates at Juvenile Hall, mentored a disadvantaged high school boy, and helped the International Rescue Committee resettle refugee families.

Candace’s devotion to the public interest was reflected by her 2018 Outstanding Attorney Award from the County Bar Association and Duke Law School’s Charles S. Rhyne Award, for demonstrating the highest standards of professionalism and personal integrity. Candace passed away on January 24, 2024. She will be sorely missed by her family, her many friends, her law partners, and our community.