Whatcom County judge to interview for the vacant seat on the state Supreme Court
Whatcom County Superior Court Judge Raquel Montoya-Lewis is among a dozen applicants to replace Justice Mary Fairhurst on the Washington State Supreme Court, according to a spokesperson the Office of Governor.
, as the first Native American judge on the Whatcom County Superior Court. She was appointed by Gov. Jay Inslee after the state Legislature approved a fourth Superior Court judge for the county in 2013.
Before that, Montoya-Lewis served as an associate professor at Western Washington University鈥檚 Fairhaven College and had served as a judge for 16 years, including as chief judge for the Lummi Nation from 2008-11. Montoya-Lewis graduated from law school at the University of Washington in Seattle in 1995.