List of first minority male lawyers and judges in Washington

This is a list of the first minority male lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Washington. It includes the year in which the men were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are men who achieved other distinctions such becoming the first in their state to obtain a law degree or become a political figure.

Firsts in state history
Ricardo S. Martinez: First Hispanic American male Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington (2004)
Cyrus Habib: First Iranian American blind male to serve as the Lieutenant Governor of Washington (2017)

Lawyer
  • Robert O. Lee (1889):[1] First African American male lawyer in Washington

Law Clerk
Judges
  • John E. Prim (1927):[5][6] First African American male judge in Washington (1954)
  • Solie M. Ringold:[7] First Jewish American male judge in Washington (1961)
  • Charles Z. Smith (1955):[2][3][4] First African American male to serve as a municipal court judge (1965) and superior court judge (1966) in Washington
  • James Phillips:[8] First Native American (Cherokee) male judge in Washington (1929)
  • Warren Chan (1950):[9][10] First Asian American male (Chinese American) elected judge in Washington (1956)
  • Richard Ishikawa:[11][12] First elected Japanese American male judge in Washington (1979)
District Court
  • Charles M. Stokes (c. 1943):[13] First African American male to serve as a district court judge in Washington (1968)
Supreme Court
District Court
  • Jack Edward Tanner (1955):[16][17] First African American male appointed as a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington and the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington (1978)
  • Ricardo S. Martinez (1980):[18] First Latino American male appointed as a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington (2004)
  • Salvador Mendoza Jr. (1997):[19] First Hispanic American male appointed as a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington (Adams County, Washington, et al.; 2014)

Political Office

Bar Association
  • Ronald Ward:[21] First African American male to serve as the President of the Washington State Bar Association (2004-2005)
  • Anthony Gipe:[22] First openly LGBT male to serve as the President of the Washington State Bar Association
  • Rajeev Majumdar:[23] First American male of South Asian descent to serve as the President of the Washington State Bar Association (2019)

Firsts in local history

Alphabetized by county name

Region
  • (Leonard) Carl Maxey (1951):[24] First African American male lawyer in Eastern Washington
  • Jack Edward Tanner (1955):[16][17] Considered "the first African American in the Pacific Northwest to be elevated to the federal bench"
  • Eddie Yoon (1976):[25][26][27] Reputed to be the first Korean American male lawyer in the Pacific Northwest

Benton County
  • Cameron Mitchell:[28] First African American male to serve as a Judge of the Benton-Franklin Superior Court (2004)
  • Salvador Mendoza Jr. (1997):[19] First Hispanic American male to serve as a Judge of the Benton-Franklin Superior Court (2013-2014)

Fairfax County
  • Marcus D. Williams:[29] First African American male appointed as a Judge of the Fairfax County General District Court (1990)

Franklin County
  • Cameron Mitchell:[28] First African American male to serve as a Judge of the Benton-Franklin Superior Court (2004)
  • Salvador Mendoza Jr. (1997):[19] First Hispanic American male to serve as a Judge of the Benton-Franklin Superior Court (2013-2014)

King County
  • John Edward Hawkins (1895):[30] First African American male lawyer in King County, Washington
  • Warren Chan (1950):[9][10] First Chinese American male lawyer in Seattle, Washington [King County, Washington]
  • Solie M. Ringold:[7] First Jewish American male judge in Washington (1961)
  • Charles Z. Smith (1955):[2] First African American male appointed as a municipal court judge in Seattle, Washington (1965)
  • Charles M. Stokes (c. 1943):[13] First African American male to serve as a Judge of the King County District Court, Washington (1968)
  • Mark Chow:[31][32] First Asian American male elected as a district court judge in King County, Washington (1990)
  • Gary Maehara:[33] First Asian American male to serve as the President of the King County Bar Association, Washington (2005)
  • Dan Gandara:[33] First Latino American male to serve as the President of the King County Bar Association, Washington (2008)
  • James Andrus:[33] First African American male to serve as the President of the King County Bar Association, Washington (2009)

Kitsap County

See also

Other topics of interest

References
  1. "Robert O. Lee becomes first African American to practice law in Washington in 1889. - HistoryLink.org". www.historylink.org. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  2. "Charles Z. Smith: Trailblazer - Legacy Washington - WA Secretary of State". Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  3. "Former state Supreme Court Justice Charles Smith dies | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved 2020-06-05.
  4. Alexander, Gerry (2007-07-11). "Charles Z. Smith (1927-2016) •". Retrieved 2020-06-05.
  5. "Prim, John E. (1898-1961) | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed". www.blackpast.org. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  6. "John E. Prim behind judge's bench, Seattle, ca. 1950 :: Black Heritage Society (KCS)". digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  7. "State's first Jewish judge dies". products.kitsapsun.com. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  8. "Washington State Courts - Washington Court News". www.courts.wa.gov. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
  9. "Former King County Superior Court Judge Warren Chan dies". The Seattle Times. 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2018-02-16.
  10. "BLOG: Honoring Warren Chan — Icon of an incredible generation". Northwest Asian Weekly. 2015-07-09. Retrieved 2018-02-16.
  11. "Judge Richard Ishikawa, pioneer and mentor". The Seattle Times. 2009-03-09. Retrieved 2020-07-03.
  12. "Richard Moriye Ishikawa". Bellevue Reporter. 2009-03-03. Retrieved 2020-07-03.
  13. "Stokes, Charles Moorehead (1903-1996) | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed". blackpast.org. Retrieved 2019-01-17.
  14. "Justice Gonzalez's win raises questions about role of ethnicity". The Seattle Times. 2012-08-08. Retrieved 2019-01-16.
  15. "Gonzalez sworn in as new justice". theolympian. Retrieved 2019-01-16.
  16. "Jack Tanner, First Black U.S. Judge, Dies at 86". 2006-01-13. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
  17. "Tanner, Jack (1919-2006) | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed". www.blackpast.org. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
  18. "Three federal judges speak with Whitman students". Whitman College. 2013-10-07. Retrieved 2018-01-30.
  19. junio 2014, Por: Griselda Nevarez 18. "Salvador Mendoza: From migrant farm worker to federal judge". La Opinión (in Spanish). Retrieved 2018-12-24.
  20. "Candidate Makes History, Becoming First Iranian American Elected to a State Legislature". PAAIA. 2012-11-07. Retrieved 2018-12-17.
  21. "Ronald R. Ward, J.D." Civility Center for Law. Retrieved 2019-01-04.
  22. "2016 General Election Voters' Guide Judicial - Anthony Gipe". weiapplets.sos.wa.gov. Retrieved 2019-01-06.
  23. "Rajeev Majumdar is the first state bar president of South Asian descent". Northwest Asian Weekly. 2019-10-07. Retrieved 2020-06-06.
  24. "African Americans in the Pacific Northwest: A Select Bibliography" (PDF). Washington State Library / Office of the Secretary of State.
  25. "Time to vote — API candidates that will be on your ballot". Northwest Asian Weekly. 2014-10-23. Retrieved 2018-02-14.
  26. "Eddie Yoon (Pages - Online Voters' Guide)". wei.sos.wa.gov. 2014. Retrieved 2018-02-14.
  27. "A recap of all races in the Washington and Idaho 2014 Election". Spokesman.com. Retrieved 2018-02-14.
  28. "Benton-County judge, Wenatchee lawyer pegged for Shea replacement". tri-cityherald. Retrieved 2018-12-24.
  29. Brown, DeNeen L. (1990-09-19). "Wilder Appoints First Black Judge to Fairfax Circuit Court". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  30. "John Edward Hawkins, King County's first black lawyer to be locally trained, is admitted to the Bar in 1895. - HistoryLink.org". www.historylink.org. Retrieved 2017-10-31.
  31. "Judge Mark Chow - King County". www.kingcounty.gov. Retrieved 2018-02-16.
  32. Chang, Gordon H. (2001). Asian Americans and Politics: Perspectives, Experiences, Prospects. Stanford University Press. ISBN 9780804742016.
  33. "Mission & History". www.kcba.org. Retrieved 2019-01-06.
  34. "Bremerton: A Celebra`ion of Black History". products.kitsapsun.com. Retrieved 2020-03-13.
  35. "Theodore Ferdinand "Ted" Spearman Jr". Legacy.com (Seattle Times).
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