--- title: "Thomas Samuel Zilly | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/thomas-samuel-zilly" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-08-02" --- # Thomas Samuel Zilly U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington - State: Washington - Role: Judge - Service status: senior - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, District Court, W.D. Washington, 1988-2004 - Practiced law in Seattle from 1962 to 1988 at Lane Powell Moss & Miller and was a judge pro tem of the Seattle Municipal Court from 1972 to 1980 - Judge pro tem, Seattle Washington Municipal Court, 1972-1980 ### Education - Cornell Law School in — J.D. (1962) - University of Michigan in — B.A. (1956) - Cornell University ### Additional information - The Senate confirmed him on April 19, 1988, and he assumed senior status on January 1, 2004. - On February 16, 1988, President Ronald Reagan nominated Zilly to the Western District of Washington bench, succeeding Walter T. McGovern. - Private practice, Seattle, WA, 1962-1988 - U.S. Naval Reserve lieutenant junior grade, 1956-1962 - Before his judicial career, he held the role of a U.S. Naval Reserve Lieutenant (J.G.) from 1956 to 1962, with active duty from 1956 to 1959. - Date of birth: 1935-01-01 - United States District Court for the Western District of Washington - Birth place: Detroit, MI ## 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 ### civil remote testimony Scope: courtwide In federal district-court civil proceedings, testimony is ordinarily taken in open court; remote contemporaneous testimony requires good cause in compelling circumstances and appropriate safeguards. Evidence excerpt: For good cause in compelling circumstances and with appropriate safeguards, the court may permit testimony in open court by contemporaneous transmission from a different location. [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### criminal recording and broadcasting Scope: courtwide Federal district courts may not permit courtroom photography or broadcasting during criminal judicial proceedings unless a statute or another federal rule provides an exception. Evidence excerpt: Except as otherwise provided by a statute or these rules, the court must not permit the taking of photographs in the courtroom during judicial proceedings or the broadcasting of judicial proceedings from the courtroom. [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1390281) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1390281) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1390281) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/3597/thomas-samuel-zilly/) - [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) - [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/3597/thomas-samuel-zilly/) - [Wikidata: Thomas Samuel Zilly](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7793767) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/thomas-samuel-zilly", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/thomas-samuel-zilly", "name": "Thomas Samuel Zilly | KnowJudges", "description": "Thomas Samuel Zilly, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. 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Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-civil-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-8721a344fececced2257fe1d) — Criminal proceedings in United States District Courts; this conservative mapping does not distribute appellate-specific provisions to appellate judges. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.