Judge
First Judicial District of PA
Viktoria Kristiansson is a judge of the Court of Common Pleas of the First Judicial District in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Prior to her service on the Bench, Judge Kristiansson was an Attorney Advisor at AEquitas: The Prosecutors’ Resource on Violence Against Women. There, she trained prosecutors, police, judges, corrections officers, and other professionals across the country on the implementation of trauma- informed best practices in cases related to violence against women and children. She regularly presented on and provided case consultation related to trial strategy, legal analysis and policy, and ethical issues.
Judge Kristiansson began her legal career as an Assistant District Attorney in Philadelphia, where she focused on the prosecution of cases involving sexual assault, intimate partner violence, and child sexual and physical abuse. She later served as a Deputy Attorney General and Special Assistant to the Attorney General of New Jersey. In those capacities, she concentrated on the investigation and prosecution of human trafficking cases and on collaborations among criminal justice professionals and victim services agencies that created and refined programs supporting violence against women initiatives and survivors.
In addition to authoring 15 peer-reviewed articles, Judge Kristiansson has written an addendum to the Benchbook on Crimes of Sexual Violence used by Pennsylvania judges for cases involving campus sexual assault. She also has lectured at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, Georgetown Law Center, and Villanova Law School, and has testified before a number of independent federal advisory committees regarding sexual victimization in prisons and sexual assault in the military.
Judge Kristiansson also serves as a mentor for the Women of Tomorrow Mentor and Scholarship program in Philadelphia, a program designed to inspire, motivate, and empower at-risk girls. She volunteers as a mentor every month at Parkway Center City Public High School. Before becoming a Judge, she was a volunteer attorney at the Support Center for Child Advocates and served on the Advisory Board of the Urban Institute’s Bending Toward Justice: Perceptions of Justice Among Human Trafficking Survivors and the New Jersey Governor’s Advisory Council Against Sexual Violence.
Judge Kristiansson received a Bachelor of Arts from Indiana University and a Juris Doctor from Temple University School of Law.