Brendan Williams

Washington Court of Appeals

Division II, District Two, Position 2

Legal/Judicial Experience: Law Clerk, Washington Supreme Court, 1998-2000; Attorney/Executive Director, Washington Health Care Association, 2000-2005; Law Office of Brendan Williams P.S., 2005-2010.

Other Professional Experience: Current Deputy Insurance Commissioner, 2010-present. Early professional work included Governor's and Senate internships, running Washington Student Lobby, and a WSU criminal justice teaching assistantship.

Education: B.A., Evergreen; M.A., Criminal Justice, Washington State University (Alpha Phi Sigma Honor Society); J.D., University of Washington Law School.

Community Service: State representative, 2005-2010, named best by eight groups. Frequent newspaper columnist. Many philanthropic activities including boards of groups like Boys & Girls Clubs of Thurston County. Member, First United Methodist Church.

Statement: Deputy Insurance Commissioner Brendan Williams is a former state representative, statewide health care association leader, and State Supreme Court clerk who worked on murder cases. He brings to the Court of Appeals integrity, a passion for justice, and proven hands-on leadership for crime victims and their families.

While in the State House, Brendan had a solo legal practice, specializing in labor-management relations. A member of the Criminal Justice & Judiciary committees, Brendan helped negotiate major sex crime and court funding legislation, and authored several criminal laws.

Honored by the Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs, Brendan is endorsed by all public safety advocates - from Firefighters to State Troopers. A disabilities' advocate, Brendan was an Autism Society honoree. An advocate for justice, Brendan played key roles in defeating ballot attempts to rig courtrooms to favor big insurers over you.

Published in three law reviews on criminal justice, Brendan earned a WSU criminal justice M.A. and UW law degree. An Olympia resident, Brendan lived in low-income housing as a child. Brendan and Nicole have a 10-year-old son, Blake. As a judge, Brendan will keep giving 3% of salary back to the state as long as state workers must.

Candidate ratings:

ORGANIZATION	TOM BJORGEN	JIM FOLEY	PAM LOGINSKY	MICHAEL LYNCH	TOM WEAVER	BRENDAN WILLIAMS
Cardozo Society	*	*	Well Qualified	*	Well Qualified	*
Justice for Washington Foundation	Well Qualified	Unqualified	Well Qualified	Well Qualified	Qualified	Unqualified
Q-Law: The GLBT Bar Association of Washington	*	*	*	*	*	Well Qualified
Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association	Well Qualified	*	Exceptionally Well Qualified	*	Well Qualified	*
Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys	Well Qualified	Not Rated	Exceptionally Well Qualified	Well Qualified	Qualified	Well Qualified
Washington Defense Trial Lawyers	Qualified	Declined Participation	Exceptionally Well Qualified	Exceptionally Well Qualified	Declined Partipation	Declined Participation
Washington Women Lawyers	Exceptionally Well Qualified	*	Exceptionally Well Qualified	Qualified	Qualified	*

Important note! Each of these organizations uses its own standards and rating terms when evaluating candidates; please check their pages for further information. We do not have ratings for candidates with an asterisk (*), and the reasons vary. Some evaluations may still be in process, or we might not have received them yet; some candidates may not have been offered an opportunity to participate, or they may have declined to participate. Again, please check the organizations' pages for further details.

Archived Version: August 7, 2012

Washington Court of Appeals

Division II, District Two, Position 2