---
title: "Fa'amomoi Masaniai | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/fa-amomoi-masaniai-judge-king-county-district-court-south-division-kent-facility-mrjc-11746-wa"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-07"
---

# Fa'amomoi Masaniai

King County District Court · Judge

## Profile

- Court: King County District Court
- State: Washington
- Role: Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-07-26

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## 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 recording

Scope: statewide

Washington GR 16 allows video recording, audio recording, and still photography by the news media in courtrooms only after the judge has expressly granted permission.

Evidence excerpt: Video and audio recording and still photography by the news media are allowed in the courtroom during and between sessions, provided (1) that permission shall have first been expressly granted by the judge

[Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/pdf/GR/GA_GR_16_00_00.pdf)
Source checked: 2026-07-26

### limitations on recording

Scope: statewide

If a Washington judge limits courtroom photography or recording, GR 16 requires particularized findings on the record and treats open access as presumed.

Evidence excerpt: Open access is presumed; limitations on access must be supported by reasons found by the judge to be sufficiently compelling to outweigh that presumption

[Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/pdf/GR/GA_GR_16_00_00.pdf)
Source checked: 2026-07-26


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=11746&orgid=1061)
- [Official roster](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=11746&orgid=1061)
- [Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts official judicial roster](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=11746&orgid=1061)
- [Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/pdf/GR/GA_GR_16_00_00.pdf)

## JSON-LD

```json
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@graph": [
    {
      "@type": "WebPage",
      "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/fa-amomoi-masaniai-judge-king-county-district-court-south-division-kent-facility-mrjc-11746-wa",
      "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/fa-amomoi-masaniai-judge-king-county-district-court-south-division-kent-facility-mrjc-11746-wa",
      "name": "Fa'amomoi Masaniai | KnowJudges",
      "description": "Fa'amomoi Masaniai, King County District Court. 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/fa-amomoi-masaniai-judge-king-county-district-court-south-division-kent-facility-mrjc-11746-wa#judge"
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Person",
      "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/fa-amomoi-masaniai-judge-king-county-district-court-south-division-kent-facility-mrjc-11746-wa#judge",
      "name": "Fa'amomoi Masaniai",
      "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/fa-amomoi-masaniai-judge-king-county-district-court-south-division-kent-facility-mrjc-11746-wa",
      "jobTitle": "Judge",
      "worksFor": {
        "@type": "GovernmentOrganization",
        "name": "King County District Court"
      },
      "sameAs": [
        "https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=11746&orgid=1061"
      ]
    },
    {
      "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
      "itemListElement": [
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 1,
          "name": "KnowJudges",
          "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 2,
          "name": "Washington",
          "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/state/washington"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 3,
          "name": "Fa'amomoi Masaniai",
          "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/fa-amomoi-masaniai-judge-king-county-district-court-south-division-kent-facility-mrjc-11746-wa"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}
```

## Biography

### Professional career

- Pro tem Commissioner for King County Superior Court Juvenile Division (2015)
- Engaged in conduct without regard to the power differential between judge and court staff

### Education


### Additional information

- High‐profile, historically significant Washington State judge with a long legal career, but in 2026 he was formally reprimanded for conduct deemed inappropriate under the Code of Judicial Conduct
- On April 24, 2026, the Washington State Commission on Judicial Conduct issued a reprimand after Judge Masaniai stipulated he violated Canon 1, Rules 1.1 and 1.2 and Canon 2, Rules 2.3(A) and 2.8(B) of the Code of Judicial Conduct
- Judge Fa’amomoi Masaniai is a King County, Washington District Court judge appointed in 2021 and re‐elected in 2022, but in April 2026 he was formally reprimanded by the Washington State Commission on Judicial Conduct for violating the Code of Judicial Conduct through inappropriate personal contact with a court clerk
- Masaniai, the first Samoan judge on the Washington State bench and believed to be the first graduate of the Washington State Bar Association’s Rule 6 Law Clerk Program to become a judge, was appointed to the King County District Court by the King County Council in 2021 and re‐elected by voters in 2022
- Pro tem judge in multiple municipal courts (Seattle, Renton, SeaTac, Des Moines, Issaquah, Puyallup)
- Federal and state court practice, including as an independent prosecutor in American Samoa
- The case is public, and he has accepted responsibility, completed remedial training, and continues to serve
- He has handled criminal and civil cases, small claims, name changes, protection orders, and specialized courts such as Regional Mental Health and Regional Veterans Court



## Published courtroom rules

### Shared court rules

- [Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-7133c6bd26c80972b86e0d31) — 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://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/pdf/GR/GA_GR_16_00_00.pdf). Collected 2026-07-26.
