---
title: "Rives Kistler | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/rives-kistler-5488"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-09"
---

# Rives Kistler

Oregon Supreme Court · Judge

## Profile

- Court: Oregon Supreme Court
- State: Oregon
- Role: Judge
- Service status: former
- Last verified: 2026-08-22

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## Biography

### Professional career

- Judge, Oregon Supreme Court, 2003-present
- He clerked for Judge Charles Clark of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. of the U.S. Supreme Court

### Education

- JD summa cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center in 1981
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

### Additional information

- American jurist who served on the Oregon Supreme Court from 2003 to 2018, known for his meticulous legal reasoning.
- Appointed to the court in August 2003 by Democratic Gov.
- prof, 2002-2002
- Kistler was born in Los Angeles in 1949 and raised near Greensboro, North Carolina.
- Date of birth: 1949-01-01
- Known for his textualist judicial philosophy and calm, principled demeanor, he also taught state constitutional law at Lewis & Clark Law School
- Birth place: Los Angeles

## 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

### electronic devices recording

Scope: statewide

Oregon OJD guidance under UTCR 3.180 requires advance permission from the judge or court designee before electronic notes, courtroom recording, or electronic transmission from the courtroom.

Evidence excerpt: you need advance permission from the judge or court designee before you

[Oregon Judicial Department: Media Coverage at the Courts](https://www.courts.oregon.gov/news/pages/covering-courts.aspx)
Source checked: 2026-07-26

### recording limits

Scope: statewide

Oregon OJD guidance lists proceedings and materials where recording is not allowed, including juvenile cases, many family-law cases, voir dire, private conversations, jurors, and recesses.

Evidence excerpt: Recording is never allowed for

[Oregon Judicial Department: Media Coverage at the Courts](https://www.courts.oregon.gov/news/pages/covering-courts.aspx)
Source checked: 2026-07-26

### remote hearing platform

Scope: statewide

Oregon OJD states that remote hearings use Webex and that the court provides case participants with the link to join the hearing.

Evidence excerpt: The court uses Webex to host these remote hearings and will provide case participants with the link to join the hearing.

[Oregon Judicial Department: Remote Hearings](https://www.courts.oregon.gov/services/online/Pages/RemoteHearings.aspx)
Source checked: 2026-07-26

### remote public access

Scope: statewide

Oregon OJD explains that eligible remote hearings may be live-streamed for public viewing through Webex Events, subject to limitations and court access instructions.

Evidence excerpt: If the remote hearing is eligible for public viewing, it will be live-streamed through Webex Events

[Oregon Judicial Department: Remote Hearings](https://www.courts.oregon.gov/services/online/Pages/RemoteHearings.aspx)
Source checked: 2026-07-26

### livestream access

Scope: statewide

Oregon OJD publishes live stream access instructions and states that live streaming begins shortly before scheduled proceedings.

Evidence excerpt: Live streaming of proceedings begins approximately five minutes before the scheduled proceeding time.

[Oregon Judicial Department: Live Stream Proceedings](https://www.courts.oregon.gov/services/online/Pages/live-stream.aspx)
Source checked: 2026-07-26


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/5488/rives-kistler/)
- [Official roster](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/5488/rives-kistler/)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/5488/rives-kistler/)
- [Oregon Judicial Department: Media Coverage at the Courts](https://www.courts.oregon.gov/news/pages/covering-courts.aspx)
- [Oregon Judicial Department: Remote Hearings](https://www.courts.oregon.gov/services/online/Pages/RemoteHearings.aspx)
- [Oregon Judicial Department: Live Stream Proceedings](https://www.courts.oregon.gov/services/online/Pages/live-stream.aspx)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/5488/rives-kistler/)
- [Rives Kistler - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Rives_Kistler)
- [Rives Kistler - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rives_Kistler)
- [Wikidata: Rives Kistler](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7338805)

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