Justin for Judge

Justin for Judge Justice Court judge in Marion County since 2021. Before that, Assistant Attorney General since 2009. Foster and adoptive parent.

Photos: KPTV https://www.kptv.com/2026/05/09/marion-county-justice-court-offer-online-night-court-starting-this-summer/

Because of my own wedding story, I have a special place in my heart for couples who need a last minute wedding. It’s imp...
08/09/2026

Because of my own wedding story, I have a special place in my heart for couples who need a last minute wedding. It’s important to me that they receive the same dignity and respect that a big fancy wedding receives. This week I got two calls from Washington State(!). First, I got a call from a family whose wedding venue burned down in the Spokane wildfires. I also got a call from a couple at JBLM who are both in the service but who are being assigned to different bases. They both found me online and drove from Washington to make it happen. I feel so privileged to help people when they really need it.

The last event OLIO, the conference to welcome new law students into the legal profession, is a skit/lipsink competition...
08/02/2026

The last event OLIO, the conference to welcome new law students into the legal profession, is a skit/lipsink competition. It’s my favorite part of the weekend. On the first day, the students are so stiff — posturing in front of each other and constantly comparing resumes. That posturing is the sound of fear; it’s the fear of not being good enough, of not fitting in. By the third day, that fear has melted away. They can be truly silly and vulnerable in front of each other. And that kind of vulnerability, like I'm showing in this picture wearing a truly ugly suit and playing a silly version of myself, is the kind of thing that builds real community. We are doing good work here.

It’s my favorite weekend of the year, OLIO, when we welcome new law students from under-represented backgrounds into the...
08/01/2026

It’s my favorite weekend of the year, OLIO, when we welcome new law students from under-represented backgrounds into the practice of law. My team, the Millenial Falcons, is dominating this series of very serious competitions. (Shown here pitching coasters onto a target.) It’s all in good fun- an excellent way to build community for these future rockstars. Welcome to Oregon, colleagues.

I managed to finagle an extra FTE out of the County Commissioners—the only new position in the county this year. That's ...
07/26/2026

I managed to finagle an extra FTE out of the County Commissioners—the only new position in the county this year. That's great news... except we don't have any more desks.

That means I have to give up my beloved cubicle in the clerks' bullpen. (Yes, I have a desk in my fancy chambers, but I don't like working there. I'm happiest when I'm close enough to jump in and help.)

So this weekend I went to my favorite secondhand hunting ground—Facebook Marketplace—and found a standing desk and a small table that will make the perfect printer stand. I bought them with my own money, and this weekend I'll be setting up a new workstation in the corner where the coat rack used to be.

The best part -- the little table has a history.

It came from the Oregon Supreme Court building. It was the old dictionary table in the State Law Library—the place where the official copy of Webster's Third New International Dictionary sat for decades.

For those of you who aren't legal nerds, when Oregon courts interpret an undefined statutory term, we begin with the text and context of the statute, and Webster's Third is the dictionary our appellate courts use. So this humble little table has had a front-row seat to generations of legal research.

Now it's going to hold my printer.

I like to think it's not a demotion—just a change in assignment. And who knows? Maybe a little of the legal wisdom will seep into my opinions by osmosis.

Welcome back to Salem, little table.

Do you think I can get these glasses in my prescription?
07/22/2026

Do you think I can get these glasses in my prescription?

07/20/2026

Congrats to Charlene and Brian, who marched from the wedding chapel to the reception restaurant New Orleans style, accompanied by a Dixieland brass band! What a joy to officiate the marriage of good friends!

Every Wednesday morning, I hold ex parte hours, which is sort of like the court's "open mic night". It's a time for cli...
06/28/2026

Every Wednesday morning, I hold ex parte hours, which is sort of like the court's "open mic night". It's a time for clients to petition the court, often for payment plans so they can get unsuspended after they failed to appear at a court hearing.

I often say that the art of judging is knowing who needs a coach and who needs a drill sergeant. I'm working as a coach with a client who is in the process of turning her life around after making a series of bad choices. It's tough work -- requires a lot of time and energy -- but it's heartwarming when you help people reach an inflection point!

I’d say we were burning the midnight oil at court, but it was actually dawn. The Sherriff recently upgraded a server, bu...
06/23/2026

I’d say we were burning the midnight oil at court, but it was actually dawn. The Sherriff recently upgraded a server, but it turns out that the new equipment is not backwards compatible with the software that auto uploads their tickets into the mainframe. The result is that we had to hand-enter 600 tickets this weekend to be ready for today's arraignments. Is this judge work? Not really, but I try to make sure I’m the first one to arrive and the last one to leave when we have this kind of project. The upside is that the drive to work has been super pretty this week.

06/14/2026

When I was a kid, I wanted to grow up to be a teacher. I never did get around to getting my education degree, but I ended up as a trial lawyer, which is pretty similar. They're both communication jobs. Now that I'm the Justice Court judge, I spend a lot of my time teaching everyday people about the law in everyday, easy-to-understand terms. It's one of my favorite parts of my job. I wasn't on the bench today - but I got to entertain (and I hope inform) some people with Oregon LGBT trivia. It was a super fun day.

06/13/2026

Come play LGBT legal trivia here at the Salem Pride block party! The law has come such a long way in the last 20 years. In 2002 I camped out in front of the United States Supreme Court overnight, in line to watch oral argument on the case that decided states could not outlaw homosexuality. If I could tell 22-year-old me that we’d win that case, would would eventually win the right to be married, and I would be here 24 years later as an openly gay judge(!) I would never have believed you! It’s a good day to celebrate. Come play lgbt legal trivia with me at the block party. It’s a good time and you might learn something!

Address

4660 Portland Road NE UNIT 107
Salem, OR
97305

Telephone

+15035767200

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Justin for Judge posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category