--- title: "Earl A Peterson | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/earl-a-peterson-superior-court-judge-alaska-superior-court-fairbanks-ak" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-07" --- # Earl A Peterson Alaska Superior Court, Judicial District 4 · Superior Court Judge ## Profile - Court: Alaska Superior Court, Judicial District 4 - State: Alaska - Role: Superior Court Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-10-02 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Superior Court Judge, Alaska Superior Court, Judicial District 4; from 2019 - Earl A. Peterson is a judge on the Fairbanks Superior Court in Alaska’s 4th Judicial District, appointed in July 2019 by Governor Michael J. Dunleavy - Prior role: Magistrate Judge, Fairbanks District Court (appointed 2017) - Before that appointment, he served as a Fairbanks District Court magistrate from 2017 and held a position as an assistant district attorney with the Alaska Department of Law. - Earlier career: Assistant District Attorney with the Alaska Department of Law in Fairbanks (2010–2017), prosecuting misdemeanors, felonies, and sexual offenses ### Education - Chicago-Kent College of Law — J.D. (1995) ### Additional information - Appointed: July 3, 2019, replacing Hon. Douglas Blankenship. - Governor Mike Dunleavy appointed him on July 3, 2019, to replace Douglas Blankenship. - Licensing: Illinois (1995) and Alaska (2011). - Private practice: Civil litigation in torts, family law, estates, and class actions in Chicago. - Peterson serves in the 4th Judicial District, which includes Aniak, Bethel, Delta Junction, Emmonak, Fairbanks, Fort Yukon, Galena, Hooper Bay, Nenana, and Tok. - He handles both civil and criminal cases. - Peterson has served on the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District Curriculum Advisory Committee, the ThriveAlaska Board, and as a judge for National History Day and We The People competitions. - Earl A. Peterson serves on the Fairbanks Superior Court in Alaska’s Fourth Judicial District. - the Fourth District as encompassing Aniak, Bethel, Delta Junction, Emmonak, Fairbanks, Fort Yukon, Galena, Hooper Bay, Nenana, and Tok. ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### photography filming recording Scope: statewide Alaska generally prohibits photographing, filming, and recording in courthouse common areas unless an application is approved, while separate courtroom and adjacent-area rules remain governed by Administrative Rule 50 and Administrative Bulletin No. 45. Evidence excerpt: Except as specifically authorized by this order, photographing, filming, and recording are permitted in common areas inside the courthouse only upon the issuance of an approved application. [Presiding Judges' Statewide Order on Use of Cameras and Electronic Devices in Common Areas of Court Facilities](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### courtroom media requests Scope: statewide Alaska states that media may request permission from a judicial officer for coverage inside a particular courtroom or adjacent area, and the judicial officer rules on those requests. Evidence excerpt: not intended to interfere with or restrict the rights of the media to request permission from a judicial officer to allow media coverage within a particular courtroom or adjacent area [Presiding Judges' Statewide Order on Use of Cameras and Electronic Devices in Common Areas of Court Facilities](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/index.htm) - [Official roster](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/index.htm) - [Alaska Court System official judicial roster](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/index.htm) - [Presiding Judges' Statewide Order on Use of Cameras and Electronic Devices in Common Areas of Court Facilities](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf) - [Hearings & Trials](https://courts.alaska.gov/trialcourts/hearings.htm) - [ajc.alaska.gov](https://ajc.alaska.gov/judges/judgemain.html) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/) - [gov.alaska.gov](https://gov.alaska.gov/governor-dunleavy-announces-three-new-superior-court-judges/) - [www.elections.alaska.gov](https://www.elections.alaska.gov/election/2022/genr/oepbooks/2022-Alaska-Book-5-R5_web.pdf) - [ajc.alaska.gov](https://ajc.alaska.gov/judges/judgemain.html) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/index.htm) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/trialcourts/hearings.htm) - [gov.alaska.gov](https://gov.alaska.gov/governor-dunleavy-announces-three-new-superior-court-judges/) - [www.elections.alaska.gov](https://www.elections.alaska.gov/election/2022/genr/oepbooks/2022-Alaska-Book-5-R5_web.pdf) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/) - [ajc.alaska.gov](https://ajc.alaska.gov/judges/judgemain.html) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/index.htm) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/trialcourts/hearings.htm) - [gov.alaska.gov](https://gov.alaska.gov/governor-dunleavy-announces-three-new-superior-court-judges/) - [www.elections.alaska.gov](https://www.elections.alaska.gov/election/2022/genr/oepbooks/2022-Alaska-Book-5-R5_web.pdf) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/earl-a-peterson-superior-court-judge-alaska-superior-court-fairbanks-ak", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/earl-a-peterson-superior-court-judge-alaska-superior-court-fairbanks-ak", "name": "Earl A Peterson | KnowJudges", "description": "Earl A Peterson, Alaska Superior Court, Judicial District 4. Source-linked judicial identity, courtroom procedures, and presentation guidance.", "dateModified": "2026-10-07", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/earl-a-peterson-superior-court-judge-alaska-superior-court-fairbanks-ak#judge" } }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/earl-a-peterson-superior-court-judge-alaska-superior-court-fairbanks-ak#judge", "name": "Earl A Peterson", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/earl-a-peterson-superior-court-judge-alaska-superior-court-fairbanks-ak", "jobTitle": "Superior Court Judge", "worksFor": { "@type": "GovernmentOrganization", "name": "Alaska Superior Court, Judicial District 4" }, "sameAs": [ "https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/index.htm" ], "alumniOf": [ { "@type": "EducationalOrganization", "name": "Chicago-Kent College of Law" } ] }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "KnowJudges", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Alaska", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/state/alaska" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Earl A Peterson", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/earl-a-peterson-superior-court-judge-alaska-superior-court-fairbanks-ak" } ] } ] } ``` ## Published courtroom rules ### Shared court rules - [Presiding Judges' Statewide Order on Use of Cameras and Electronic Devices in Common Areas of Court Facilities](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-4195c4aa8c36145cd11c25b9) — Scope is limited to the court class in the source claim. Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. This is not a personal preference or a complete rules inventory. [Official source](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf). Collected 2026-07-26.