---
title: "Laurel Gibson | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/laurel-gibson-judge-king-county-district-court-south-division-burien-facility-11749-wa"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-07"
---

# Laurel Gibson

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=11749&orgid=1057)
- [Official roster](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=11749&orgid=1057)
- [Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts official judicial roster](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=11749&orgid=1057)
- [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)

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## Biography

### Professional career

- Judge Gibson has been elected multiple times to the Southwest Division of the King County District Court, winning general elections in 2016, 2018, and 2022
- Before her appointment, Judge Gibson held the role of a King County District Court pro tem judge from 2014 to 2016 and as an administrative law judge with the Washington State Office of Administrative Hearings from 2011 to 2016.
- She also worked for over 12 years as a public defender in King County

### Education

- Bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Washington and a J.D. from Seattle University School of Law.

### Additional information

- Appointed to the King County District Court bench in 2016 and subsequently elected later that year, with her current term ending on January 11, 2027.
- representing clients in criminal cases.
- Earlier in her career, she was a resource manager with the Washington Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS)
- focusing on community-based residential alternatives for individuals with developmental disabilities and participating in the agency’s Crisis and Diversion Planning Committee.
- Assigned to the Burien courthouse, where she hears all types of district court cases.
- Judges in King County are chosen in nonpartisan elections and serve four-year terms, after which they must run for re-election if they wish to continue serving.
- Beyond her judicial duties, Judge Gibson has contributed to equity and social justice initiatives, including participation in committees focused on court rules, budgeting, and pre-trial reform.
- Judge Gibson is actively involved in court administration, serving on the KCDC Budget Committee, Rules Committee, and as a sub-committee member for the Pre-trial Services Reform Task Force.
- She is a native of South King County and has spent much of her career serving the local community.



## 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.
