# King County Superior Court

The Superior Court of Washington for King County (more commonly, the King County Superior Court) is the largest trial court in Washington state. It is based at the King County Courthouse, 516 Third Avenue, in downtown Seattle, Washington. It also operates a juvenile facility and a Regional Justice Center in Kent, southeast of Seattle.
As of November 2018, the court has 53 judges who have general jurisdiction to hear major civil and criminal cases. The court also has appellate jurisdiction over certain decisions of the district courts, municipal courts, and administrative tribunals.

## Current judges

| | Name | Assumed office | Current term end | Appointed by | Law school |
| Judges ||||||
| Presiding Judge | Patrick Oishi | January 2011 | January 13, 2025 | Christine Gregoire (D) | Seattle University |
| Asst. Presiding Judge | Mary E. Roberts | January 2003 | January 13, 2025 | Gary Locke (D) | University of Washington |
| Chief Civil Court Judge | Tanya Thorp | April 1, 2014 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Seattle University |
| Chief Criminal Court Judge (Seattle) | Karen Donohue | March 2018 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Seattle University |
| Chief Criminal Court Judge (Kent) | Ketu Shah | May 10, 2019 | January 13, 2024 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Minnesota |
| Chief Unified Family Court Judge | Sean O'Donnell | January 2013 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Seattle University |
| Chief Juvenile Court Judge | Averil Rothrock | October 28, 2018 | January 13, 2024 | Jay Inslee (D) | Willamette University |
| Asst. Chief Criminal Court Judge | Johanna Bender | November 2, 2015 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Washington |
| Judge | Chad Allred | May 12, 2014 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Texas |
| Judge | Susan Amini | May 13, 2013 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Maryland |
| Judge | Kristin Ballinger | December 22, 2021 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Columbia University |
| Judge | Elizabeth J. Berns | January 2013 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Seattle University |
| Judge | Regina Cahan | October 1, 2008 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | University of Wisconsin |
| Judge | Samuel Chung | May 27, 2014 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | George Washington University |
| Judge | Andrea Darvas | January 2004 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | University of Michigan |
| Judge | J. Michael Diaz | January 2018 | January 13, 2023 | Jay Inslee (D) | Cornell University |
| Judge | Marshall Ferguson | 2018 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Washington |
| Judge | Veronica Galván | December 19, 2014 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Washington |
| Judge | Julia Garratt | July 2013 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Gonzaga University |
| Judge | Janet Helson | March 11, 2015 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of California, Berkeley |
| Judge | Jason Holloway | February 18, 2022 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Willamette University |
| Judge | David Keenan | January 2017 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Seattle University |
| Judge | Matt Lapin | April 30, 2022 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Miami |
| Judge | Nelson K.H. Lee | February 18, 2020 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Pepperdine University |
| Judge | Hillary Madsen | January 11, 2021 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Seattle University |
| Judge | Adrienne McCoy | October 1, 2021 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Washington |
| Judge | LeRoy McCullough | January, 1989 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | University of Washington |
| Judge | Brian McDonald | August 2019 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Michigan |
| Judge | John McHale | January 9, 2017 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Seattle University |
| Judge | Maureen McKee | August 23, 2018 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Cornell University |
| Judge | Annette Messitt | January 8, 2019 | January 13, 2024 | Jay Inslee (D) | DePaul University |
| Judge | Coreen Wilson | December 16, 2022 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Washington |
| Judge | Suzanne Parisien | January 10, 2013 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Villanova University |
| Judge | Nicole Gaines Phelps | January 9, 2017 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Indiana University |
| Judge | Cindi Port | April 2020 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Gonzaga University |
| Judge | Jason Poydras | July 8, 2021 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Seattle University |
| Judge | Mafé Rajul | 2018 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Washington |
| Judge | Judith Ramseyer | January 2012 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Seattle University |
| Judge | Kristin Richardson | November 8, 2016 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Willamette University |
| Judge | Andrea Robertson | December 31, 2020 | January 13, 2024 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Washington |
| Judge | Jim Rogers | January 2005 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Georgetown University |
| Judge | Steve Rosen | January 9, 2017 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | University of Minnesota |
| Judge | John Ruhl | April 1, 2014 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Notre Dame |
| Judge | Michael K. Ryan | January 10, 2019 | January 13, 2024 | Jay Inslee (D) | Georgetown University |
| Judge | Ken Schubert | January 14, 2013 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | University of Washington |
| Judge | Michael Scott | 2018 | January 13, 2024 | Jay Inslee (D) | Stanford University |
| Judge | Matthew J. Segal | July 9, 2021 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Seattle University |
| Judge | Catherine Shaffer | November 2000 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | Columbia University |
| Judge | Aimee Sutton | February 10, 2019 | January 13, 2024 | Elected | University of Washington |
| Judge | Haydee Vargas | March 21, 2022 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | Seattle University |
| Judge | David Whedbee | September 16, 2019 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Washington |
| Judge | Sandra Widlan | April 2, 2018 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | New York University |
| Judge | Josephine Wiggs-Martin | March 2019 | January 13, 2024 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Washington |
| Judge | Matthew Williams | January 9, 2017 | January 13, 2025 | Elected | University of Nebraska |
| Judge | Melinda Young | January 2, 2019 | January 13, 2025 | Jay Inslee (D) | University of Washington |
| Commissioner | Shannon Gould | - | - | - | Seattle University |
| Commissioner | Mark Hillman | - | - | - | Seattle University |
| Commissioner | Hollis Holman | - | - | - |
| Commissioner | Melinda Taylor Johnson | - | - | - | Seattle University |
| Commissioner | Henry Judson | - | - | - | Lewis & Clark College |
| Commissioner | Jonathon Lack | June 17, 2019 | - | - | University of Richmond School of Law |
| Commissioner | Jennie Laird | - | - | - | Seattle University |
| Commissioner | Bradford Moore | - | - | - | Seattle University |
| Commissioner | Nicole Wager | - | - | - | - |

## Notable judges

* Walter B. Beals
* Adam Beeler
* William L. Downing
* Barbara Durham
* Matthew W. Hill
* Faith Ireland
* Richard A. Jones
* Robert S. Lasnik
* Gary Little
* Ricardo S. Martinez
* Marsha Pechman
* John S. Robinson
* Stanley C. Soderland
* James Street
* Mary Yu