Washington Courts: Press Release Detail

Dawn Marie Rubio is Named New Washington Court Administrator

OLYMPIA — Washington Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Fairhurst announced that Dawn Marie Rubio has been appointed Washington State Court Administrator, effective January 1, 2019. She will take over from current Court Administrator Callie T. Dietz, who is retiring at the end of the year.

The State Court Administrator heads the state Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), a judicial branch agency that reports to the Supreme Court and provides a wide range of administrative assistance to all courts across the state including education, technology, research, fiscal and committee coordination services. Rubio joins AOC as State Court Administrator Designate, and will work alongside Dietz through the end of the year.

“Dawn Marie brings a depth of knowledge about court issues from her varied experience with multiple state court systems,” said Chief Justice Fairhurst when announcing the appointment. “We look forward to working with her and are thrilled that someone of her caliber will be the next leader of AOC.”

Before joining AOC, Rubio had served as Utah Juvenile Court Administrator since 2013, and previously had served as assistant director of the Administrative Office of Illinois Courts, principal court management consultant for the National Center for State Courts, in various legal and administrative positions for the Office of Court Administrator, Seventeenth Judicial Circuit in Florida, and as an adjunct professor of law with Nova Southeastern University in Florida. She received both a bachelor and a law degree from the University of Florida in Gainesville.

“The appointment as state court administrator is my dream job and the culmination of 30 years of work with courts and the judicial branch.  I am honored and humbled to follow in the footsteps of the amazing women who came before me,” said Dawn Marie.  “I hope to make those who trusted me with this opportunity proud and I plan to serve our courts and the citizens of Washington to the best of my abilities.”

The selection process for State Court Administrator involved a national search resulting in two rounds of interviews by a team consisting of Dietz, and judicial officers representing all levels of court.

Dietz has served as State Court Administrator since 2012, coming to Washington after she was the first woman to serve as Administrative Director of Courts for the state of Alabama. In addition to her work in Washington, Dietz served in a number of national leadership roles including as President of the Conference of State Court Administrators, and vice-chair of the National Center for State Courts Board of Directors.

Chief Justice Fairhurst said “Callie has been an exceptional leader of the AOC.  We will greatly miss her expertise, collaborative leadership style and thoughtfulness.  She has been a joy to work with and the AOC and the justice system in Washington are better because of her service.  We wish her the best in retirement and will miss her very much.”

The Administrative Office of the Courts was created by state lawmakers in 1957 to provide professional and technical support to the state's more than 250 courts. The agency operates under the direction and supervision of the Chief Justice of the Washington Supreme Court.

With assistance of staff, the state court administrator helps implement the policies and rules adopted by the Supreme Court and judicial branch leaders, compiles court statistics, develops procedures to assist with the needs of state courts, gathers information on the challenges and operations of the judicial system, and provides information to the public, the court community, and to local and state lawmakers. 

The administrator’s staff also manages the state’s Judicial Information System (JIS) and prepares and submits budget and accounting estimates relating to state appropriations for the judicial system. For further information regarding the operations of the Washington Supreme Court or the AOC, please visit www.courts.wa.gov.