Washington Courts: News and Information

Justice Steven González Elected Next Chief Justice of the Washington Supreme Court

Chief Justice-Elect Steven C. González was elected by his peers on November 5, 2020 to be the 58th chief justice of the Washington Supreme Court, beginning January 11, 2021.

Justice González will succeed Debra L. Stephens, who will continue to serve on the court as a justice and was re-elected this week to a six-year term.

“I am honored to be elected by my colleagues and I look forward to working with them and others on the important initiatives and decisions of this Court that touch the lives of everyone in Washington,” said Justice González following the election.

González has been a member of the Supreme Court since January 2012, and he was a King County Superior Court judge for 10 years before joining the Supreme Court. Before becoming a judge, Justice González was an Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Washington, an Assistant City Attorney for the City of Seattle, and a business law attorney in private practice.

He received the U.S. Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award, the Department of Justice Director’s Award for Superior Performance and numerous Judge of the Year awards from a variety of local and national organizations.

Justice González was chair of the Access to Justice Board and now serves on the Board for Judicial Administration, the Gender and Justice Commission and chairs the Interpreter Commission.

As chief justice, González will become the court’s chief spokesperson, preside over the court’s public hearings and become administrative head of the state’s trial and appellate court system. He will also co-chair the state’s Board for Judicial Administration, the policy-setting group of the state judiciary.

He earned his B.A. with Honors in East Asian Studies from Pitzer College and his J.D. from U.C. Berkeley School of Law. Please click here for a full biography.