Steven C. González at a glance
- Current role
- Justice
- Jurisdiction
- Washington · State
- Judicial service
- Active
Steven C. González
Justice · Supreme Court of Washington
Biography
Professional career
- Following his term as Chief Justice, González continues to serve as an Associate Justice of the Washington Supreme Court, with his current term ending in 2031
- American jurist who held the role of Chief Justice of the Washington Supreme Court from 2021 to 2025 and has been an Associate Justice since 2012
- Judge, Washington Supreme Court, 2012-present
- He became the first Chief Justice of color in the state’s history, serving from January 11, 2021 to January 13, 2025
- Appointed to the Washington Supreme Court on January 1, 2012 by Governor Christine Gregoire, replacing Justice Gerry L. Alexander
- Private practice at Hillis Clark Martin & Peterson in Seattle
- Assistant United States Attorney in the Western District of Washington, a Domestic Violence Prosecutor for the City of Seattle and in private practice at a Seattle law firm
Education
- University of California, Berkeley School of Law in, where he was Technical Editor of the La Raza Law Journal — J.D. (1991)
- U.C. Berkeley School of Law — J.D.
Additional information
- 2022 Spirit of Excellence Award (ABA Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity).
- Practitioner, 2011-2011
- Assistant United States Attorney in the Western District of Washington (1997–2002), prosecuting organized crime, hate crimes, and the high-profile terrorism case U.S. v.
- Born October 1, 1963 in Los Angeles, California, González obtained a B.A. in East Asian Studies from Pitzer College (1985), with study abroad at Waseda University in Tokyo and Nanjing University in China.
- Date of birth: 1963-01-01
- As an Assistant United States Attorney, Justice González was part of the team that successfully prosecuted the international terrorism case U.S. v.
- focusing on civil and business law, including mergers, acquisitions, land use, intellectual property, and commercial litigation.
- Before his judicial appointments, he spent ten years as a trial judge on the King County Superior Court
- handling criminal, civil, juvenile, and family law cases.
- Judge of the Year awards from the Washington State Bar Association, Asian Bar Association of Washington, and others.
- Ressam, earning the U.S. Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service and the Director’s Award for Superior Performance.
- Ressam, for which he received two Department of Justice awards: the U.S. Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service and the Director’s Award for Superior Performance.
- He remains active in legal education, lecturing on constitutional law and participating in continuing legal education seminars.
- He is fluent in Japanese and Spanish, with some Mandarin.
- CZ Smith Trailblazer Award (Latina/o Bar Association of Washington).
Applicable Court Rules & Procedures
Recording and broadcasting
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.
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 judgeWashington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media ↗
Statewide
If a Washington judge limits courtroom photography or recording, GR 16 requires particularized findings on the record and treats open access as presumed.
Open access is presumed; limitations on access must be supported by reasons found by the judge to be sufficiently compelling to outweigh that presumptionWashington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media ↗
Published courtroom rules
Shared court rules
Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media
Supreme Court of Washington
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 ↗ · Collected 2026-07-26Sources
Identity source checked August 22, 2026.
Biography sources checked October 11, 2026.
Washington State Courts official judicial roster
Identity source · HTML · Source checked August 22, 2026
View Washington State Courts official judicial roster ↗CourtListener judicial biographical directory
Identity source · HTML · Source checked August 3, 2026
View CourtListener judicial biographical directory ↗Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media
Statewide source · PDF · Source checked July 26, 2026
View Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media ↗