---
title: "Theresa M. Pouley | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/theresa-m-pouley-associate-justice-tribal-courts-colville-court-of-appeals-1591-wa"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-07-26"
---

# Theresa M. Pouley

Tribal Courts - Colville Court of Appeals · Associate Justice

## Profile

- Court: Tribal Courts - Colville Court of Appeals
- State: Washington
- Role: Associate Justice
- 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=1591&orgid=909)
- [Official roster](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=1591&orgid=909)
- [Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts official judicial roster](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=1591&orgid=909)
- [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

- Distinguished Native American judge and legal leader, serving as Chief Judge of the Tulalip Tribal Court and Associate Justice of the Colville Court of Appeals
- Associate Justice, Colville Court of Appeals — reviewing appeals in tribal cases
- Serves as a trial judge and appellate justice for several other Northwest tribes through the Northwest Intertribal Court System
- Judge Pouley frequently lectures at local, state, and national conferences on tribal court and Indian law
- In summary: Theresa M. Pouley is a leading figure in Native American justice systems, combining judicial leadership, legal scholarship, and advocacy to strengthen tribal courts and uphold cultural values in the administration of justice

### Education

- B.A. from Gonzaga University and a J.D. from Wayne State University Law School.

### Additional information

- Pouley has been President of the Northwest Tribal Court Judges Association since 2005 and served on the National Tribal Court Judges Association board (2003–2004).
- Named Outstanding Judge by the National Tribal Child Support Association in 2005.
- Former Chief Judge of the Lummi Nation (1999–2005).
- Chief Judge, Tulalip Tribal Court — leading the court that handles criminal, civil, and family cases on the Tulalip Reservation.
- She has testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on tribal law and order issues, including the Tribal Law and Order Act, and has presented to U.S. Supreme Court Justices O’Connor and Breyer on “Indigenous Justice Paradigms”.
- Judge Pouley is an enrolled member of the Colville Confederated Tribes in Washington State, with ancestral ties to the Flathead, Cree, and Kotenai peoples.
- She teaches Indian law at Edmonds Community College in Washington and has taught at Northwest Indian College.
- She is also recognized for developing the Tulalip Alternative Sentencing Program, an award-winning, culturally appropriate justice initiative.



## 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.
