Mary Fairhurst

Mary E. Fairhurst (born August 1957)[1] is an American attorney and former Chief Justice of the Washington Supreme Court.[2]

Mary Fairhurst
Chief Justice of the Washington Supreme Court
In office
January 9, 2017 – January 5, 2020
Preceded byBarbara Madsen
Succeeded byDebra L. Stephens
Justice of the Washington Supreme Court
In office
January 1, 2003 – January 5, 2020
Preceded byCharles Z. Smith
Succeeded byRaquel Montoya-Lewis
Personal details
BornAugust 1957 (age 62)
Political partyDemocratic
EducationGonzaga University (BA, JD)

Education

A native of Olympia, Washington, Fairhurst earned her undergraduate degree in political science from Gonzaga University in 1979, graduating cum laude. In 1984, she earned her J.D. degree from Gonzaga University School of Law, graduating magna cum laude.

Career

Fairhurst served in the Washington Attorney General's office under Christine Gregoire and Ken Eikenberry. Fairhurst worked on a constitutional amendment to increase the rights of crime victims. She has also organized statewide conferences on domestic violence.

Fairhurt joined the Washington Supreme Court after a successful election in 2003. In 2008, She won re-election against Michael J. Bond. On November 4, 2016 it was announced that Fairhurst had been elected Chief Justice of the Washington State Supreme Court.[3][4]

Fairhurst served as the president of the Washington State Bar Association.[5] She also served on the Bar Board of Governors representing Washington's 3rd congressional district and as the President of the Washington Women Lawyers.

In October 2018, Fairhurst wrote the majority opinion on a ruling to abolish state's death penalty.[6][7]

In 2019, Fairhurst received the American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the Ninth Circuit at the Judicial Conference of the Ninth Circuit in Spokane, Washington.[8]

In October 2019, Fairhurst announced that she would retire from the court in January 2020, citing health concerns.[9] On December 4, 2019, Governor Jay Inslee nominated Raquel Montoya-Lewis to succeed Fairhurst. Montoya-Lewis will be the first Native American on the Washington Supreme Court.[10][11]

See also

References
  1. "Mary E. Fairhurst". NNDB. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  2. Archived copy, archived from the original on 2012-03-16, retrieved 2008-08-02CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. "Mary Fairhurst elected chief justice of state Supreme Court". The Seattle Times. November 4, 2016.
  4. "Washington State Courts - Supreme Court Bios - Justice Mary E. Fairhurst". Courts.wa.gov. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
  5. "Washington State Courts - Supreme Court Bios - Chief Justice Mary E. Fairhurst". www.courts.wa.gov. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
  6. Note, Recent Case: Washington State Supreme Court Declares Death Penalty Unconstitutional In Washington, 132 Harv. L. Rev. 1764 (2019).
  7. State v. Gregory, 427 P.3d 621 (Wash. 2018).
  8. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/chief-justice-mary-e-fairhurst-131500267.html
  9. "Washington Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Fairhurst will retire to focus on her health". The Seattle Times. 2019-10-03. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
  10. "Washington Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Fairhurst to retire after colon cancer diagnosis". KING. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
  11. "Raquel Montoya-Lewis named as first Native American to Washington Supreme Court | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
Legal offices
Preceded by
Charles Z. Smith		 Justice of the Washington Supreme Court
2003–2020		 Succeeded by
Raquel Montoya-Lewis
Preceded by
Barbara Madsen		 Chief Justice of the Washington Supreme Court
2017–2020		 Succeeded by
Debra L. Stephens
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