New state Supreme Court justice formally sworn in
OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - Debra L. Stephens was officially installed Monday as the newest member of Washington's Supreme Court, quoting a bit of Western wisdom as she pledged to work tirelessly for equal justice.
"I always am reminded of the cowboy poet who said, 'The courts are the place where the smallest dog can lift its leg against the highest tree,"' Stephens said, drawing guffaws from the court chambers packed with family, colleagues and government leaders.
Stephens, 42, of Spokane, ceremonially took the bench Monday as the first woman to serve from Eastern Washington and the first justice from east of the Cascades since former Chief Justice Richard Guy of Spokane retired in 2000.
Stephens also is the first high court justice appointed by Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire, who named Stephens to the post last month. She replaces retiring Justice Bobbe Bridge, keeping a gender balance of five men and four women.
To keep the seat, Stephens will have to run for election in November.
Stephens, a 1993 Gonzaga Law School graduate, has limited judicial experience. Gregoire appointed her in April to the Division III Court of Appeals, serving Spokane and the northeastern counties.
Before that, Stephens was in private practice specializing in appellate law, tallying 100-plus appearances before the state Supreme Court.
Gregoire said all Washingtonians will benefit from having an Eastern Washington perspective on the court, and said Stephens has both the intellect and the heart required of a truly fair judge.
"Justice Stephens has made a name for herself as a true legal scholar, a practitioner of uncommon skill," Gregoire said. "We are truly lucky to have you dedicate your life to service on the Washington Supreme Court."
Monday's ceremony came as Stephens prepares to hear her first oral arguments on Jan. 15. She was officially sworn in by phone on Jan. 2, two days after Bridge's retirement took effect. Since then, Stephens has been reading thick stacks of briefings and attending to some administrative matters.
As the most junior justice, she also assumes the task of keeping minutes during the court's conferences.
At Monday's ceremony, Stephens' husband, Craig, and their children Lindsey and Bob helped Stephens formally don her black robe before she was welcomed to the bench by Chief Justice Gerry Alexander and the court's seven other members.
Alexander said the court was delighted to have Stephens on board as the 92nd person to serve on the state's highest bench.
"This is such an overwhelming day for me," Stephens said. "The attitude I feel today is just one of overwhelming gratitude."
Stephens' appointment in December was a bit of a surprise. Most court-watchers had expected the choice to be Appeals Judge Mary Kay Becker, King County Superior Court Judge Mary Yu or constitutional law professor and attorney Hugh Spitzer.
The post is nonpartisan, but some jurists come to the bench with extensive political backgrounds, including serving in the Legislature.
When she was appointed, Stephens said her father, civic leader Jim Williams, ran for the Legislature as a Republican and has ties to the building industry, but she has no political affiliation herself.
Justice for Washington, an activist group headed by Republican former Sen. Slade Gorton, complained in December that Stephens has a long history of promoting the views of the state's trial lawyers.
"I always am reminded of the cowboy poet who said, 'The courts are the place where the smallest dog can lift its leg against the highest tree,"' Stephens said, drawing guffaws from the court chambers packed with family, colleagues and government leaders.
Stephens, 42, of Spokane, ceremonially took the bench Monday as the first woman to serve from Eastern Washington and the first justice from east of the Cascades since former Chief Justice Richard Guy of Spokane retired in 2000.
Stephens also is the first high court justice appointed by Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire, who named Stephens to the post last month. She replaces retiring Justice Bobbe Bridge, keeping a gender balance of five men and four women.
To keep the seat, Stephens will have to run for election in November.
Stephens, a 1993 Gonzaga Law School graduate, has limited judicial experience. Gregoire appointed her in April to the Division III Court of Appeals, serving Spokane and the northeastern counties.
Before that, Stephens was in private practice specializing in appellate law, tallying 100-plus appearances before the state Supreme Court.
Gregoire said all Washingtonians will benefit from having an Eastern Washington perspective on the court, and said Stephens has both the intellect and the heart required of a truly fair judge.
"Justice Stephens has made a name for herself as a true legal scholar, a practitioner of uncommon skill," Gregoire said. "We are truly lucky to have you dedicate your life to service on the Washington Supreme Court."
Monday's ceremony came as Stephens prepares to hear her first oral arguments on Jan. 15. She was officially sworn in by phone on Jan. 2, two days after Bridge's retirement took effect. Since then, Stephens has been reading thick stacks of briefings and attending to some administrative matters.
As the most junior justice, she also assumes the task of keeping minutes during the court's conferences.
At Monday's ceremony, Stephens' husband, Craig, and their children Lindsey and Bob helped Stephens formally don her black robe before she was welcomed to the bench by Chief Justice Gerry Alexander and the court's seven other members.
Alexander said the court was delighted to have Stephens on board as the 92nd person to serve on the state's highest bench.
"This is such an overwhelming day for me," Stephens said. "The attitude I feel today is just one of overwhelming gratitude."
Stephens' appointment in December was a bit of a surprise. Most court-watchers had expected the choice to be Appeals Judge Mary Kay Becker, King County Superior Court Judge Mary Yu or constitutional law professor and attorney Hugh Spitzer.
The post is nonpartisan, but some jurists come to the bench with extensive political backgrounds, including serving in the Legislature.
When she was appointed, Stephens said her father, civic leader Jim Williams, ran for the Legislature as a Republican and has ties to the building industry, but she has no political affiliation herself.
Justice for Washington, an activist group headed by Republican former Sen. Slade Gorton, complained in December that Stephens has a long history of promoting the views of the state's trial lawyers.