Oregon Judicial Vacancies
Recent Vacancies
Governor Brown Announces Clackamas County Circuit Court Vacancy
The following candidates have submitted materials to the Governor's Office for this vacancy. Comments on any of the candidates can be made to Deputy General Counsel at Governor Kate Brown's Office, Dustin Buehler, (503) 378-6246, or dustin.e.buehler@oregon.gov.
Kovas, Charles
Laidlaw, Angela
Medina, Ruben
Monson, Jon
Neese, Paul
Scott, Roxanne
Tran, Thanh
Weston, Cody
Wu, Michael
Governor Kate Brown Announces Jackson County Justice Court Vacancy
The following candidates have submitted materials to the Governor's Office for this vacancy. Comments on any of the candidates can be made to Deputy General Counsel at Governor Kate Brown's Office, Dustin Buehler, (503) 378-6246, or dustin.e.buehler@oregon.gov.
Watson, Janice
Wente, Nathan
Zammetti, Jennifer
Governor Kate Brown Announces Klamath County Circuit Court Vacancy
The following candidates have submitted materials to the Governor's Office for this vacancy. Comments on any of the candidates can be made to Deputy General Counsel at Governor Kate Brown's Office, Dustin Buehler, (503) 378-6246, or dustin.e.buehler@oregon.gov.
Dougherty, Sarah
Hedlund, Stephen
Kritzer, Kelly
Lam, Bonnie
Governor Kate Brown Announces Lincoln County Circuit Court Vacancy
The following candidates have submitted materials to the Governor's Office for this vacancy. Comments on any of the candidates can be made to Deputy General Counsel at Governor Kate Brown's Office, Dustin Buehler, (503) 378-6246, or dustin.e.buehler@oregon.gov.
Benjamin, Amanda
Gardner, Brian
Park, Kenneth
(Updated April 5)
Deadline Extended for Applications for Multnomah County Circuit Court Vacancies
(Salem, OR) — The Office of Governor Kate Brown announced today that it is extending the application deadline for candidates interested in two previously announced Multnomah County Circuit Court judicial vacancies, one resulting from the retirement of Judge Angel Lopez, and the other resulting from the retirement of Judge Leslie Roberts.
Interested applicants should mail (no hand delivery) their completed application forms to: Dustin Buehler, General Counsel, Office of the Governor, 900 Court Street NE #254, Salem, OR 97301-4047. With the extended deadline, forms must be received by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, April 19, 2021. Forms emailed by 5:00 p.m. on the closing date will be considered timely so long as original signed forms postmarked by the closing date are later received. Applicants who apply will be considered for both positions, and the Governor will fill both Multnomah County vacancies from the same applicant pool.
Governor Brown fills judicial vacancies based on merit. She encourages applications from lawyers with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences.
ORS 3.041 and 3.050 provide that at the time of appointment to the court, the candidate must be a citizen of the United States, a resident of Oregon, and a member of the Oregon State Bar. SB 977, recently passed by the Legislature, creates a new requirement. It amends ORS 3.041 and requires that these vacancies must be filled by persons who are residents of or have principal offices in the judicial districts to which they are appointed or adjacent judicial districts.
To receive answers to questions about the appointment process, or to request an interest form, contact Shevaun Gutridge at 503-378-6246 or shevaun.gutridge@oregon.gov.
The judicial interest form is also available online.
Recent Appointments
Governor Kate Brown Appoints Stephen Morgan to Lane County Circuit Court
Salem, OR—Governor Kate Brown announced today that she will appoint Stephen Morgan to the Lane County Circuit Court. Morgan will fill a vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Ilisa Rooke-Ley, who is retiring at the end of this month. The appointment is effective January 1, 2021.
“Stephen Morgan brings a tremendous amount of experience and compassion to the bench,” said Governor Brown. “He has spent his career prosecuting the most egregious cases of domestic violence, child abuse, and sexual assault. Through this work, he has served the community’s most vulnerable through a trauma-informed lens and has given victims a voice in our criminal justice system.”
Morgan is a deputy district attorney in the Lane County District Attorney’s Office, where he leads the domestic violence trial team that he helped create in 2008. He joined the District Attorney's Office in 2002 and has prosecuted a spectrum of cases from homicide and robbery to child abuse and domestic violence. An active member of the community, he mentors law students, served on the board of the Eugene Timbers Futbol Club, and is a member of the Lane County Domestic Violence Council.
Morgan was raised by his mother in Madras, Oregon, and joined the Marine Reserves after graduating high school. He obtained his bachelor’s degree and law degree from the University of Oregon. In between earning these degrees, he taught English in Taiwan for two years and traveled extensively before settling in Eugene—the community he has called home for nearly two decades.
Governor Brown Appoints Judges to the Circuit Court in Marion County
(Salem, OR) — Governor Kate Brown announced today that she will appoint two judges to positions on the Marion County Circuit Court. Governor Brown will appoint James 'Jim' Edmonds to a vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Mary James, and will appoint Jodie Bureta to a vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Claudia Burton.
“The Marion County Circuit Court manages a diverse and complex caseload, and I am pleased to appoint two experienced litigators who will hit the ground running,” Governor Brown said. “Like other courts around the state, Marion County will face a backlog of trials, particularly civil trials, as we emerge from the pandemic. Having Edmonds’ and Bureta’s expertise on the bench will help the court work through those cases fairly and efficiently.”
Edmonds is a lawyer in private practice, who has worked as a civil litigator for nearly 35 years. He was born and raised in Marion County, and has spent his entire legal career in the area. Edmonds earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Oregon in 1982, and graduated with his law degree from George Washington University Law School in 1986. After graduating from law school, he entered private practice as a civil litigation attorney with Clark, Marsh, Lindauer and McClinton, rising to be a managing partner with that firm. Since 2008, he has been a partner and managing partner at Fetherston Edmonds LLP. He teaches as an adjunct professor at Willamette University School of Law, and serves as a part-time judge pro tem. Edmonds is active in his community, volunteering with the Marion County Association of Defenders, the United Way Mid-Willamette Valley, and the Salem Multicultural Institute World Beat Festival. Edmonds’ appointment is effective immediately.
Bureta currently serves as a full-time hearings referee in Marion County, and her more than 17 years of legal experience span both criminal and civil law. Bureta attended Gonzaga University, and earned her law degree from Willamette University College of Law in 2003. Following her graduation, Bureta worked for over a decade as a Deputy District Attorney for the Marion County District Attorney’s Office, rising to become a trial team lead, and handling homicide and sexual assault cases, among others. During that time, she worked on the Oregon Attorney General’s Sexual Assault Task Force, and served on the faculty at the Sexual Assault Training Institute. In 2014, she transitioned to a job in the Civil Enforcement Division of the Oregon Department of Justice, spending six years investigating and prosecuting elder abuse and Medicaid fraud. In March 2020, Bureta became a full-time judge pro tem and hearings referee for the Marion County Circuit Court. Bureta volunteered for a number of years with Baden-Powell Service Association, a scouting program for youth and adults of all genders, and with Northwest Children’s Outreach. She has also volunteered to help develop and present trainings on topics related to sexual assault, serves on state and local bar committees, and mentors law students. Bureta’s appointment is effective March 11, 2021.