Tom Chambers (October 11, 1943 – December 11, 2013) was an American lawyer who served as an associate justice of the

Washington State Supreme Court The Washington Supreme Court is the highest court in the judiciary of the U.S. state of Washington. The court is composed of a chief justice and eight associate justices. Members of the court are elected to six-year terms. Justices must retire ...

from 2000 to 2012.

Early life and education

Chambers grew up in Yakima, where he worked at his father's automobile repair garage. He graduated from Wapato High School in 1962, and then attended

Yakima Valley Community College Yakima Valley College (YVC) is a public college in Yakima, Washington. It was founded as Yakima Valley Community College in 1928 with Elizabeth Prior serving as the institution's first president. The college offers five Bachelor of Applied Scienc ...

. In 1966, he graduated with a B.A. degree from

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant unive ...

, and in 1969 received a J.D. degree from the

University of Washington School of Law The University of Washington School of Law is the law school of the University of Washington, located on the northwest corner of the main campus in Seattle, Washington. The 2023 '' U.S. News & World Report'' law school rankings place Washingt ...

Legal and judicial career

While in private practice, Chambers practiced personal injury law. On the bench, he continued his commitment to individual rights. Two of his notable Supreme Court cases were ''Braam v. State of Washington'' (2003), concerning foster children's constitutional rights, and ''State v. A.N.J.'' (2010), setting standards for public defender case loads. Chambers served as president of both the

Washington State Bar Association The Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) operates under the delegated authority of the Washington Supreme Court to license the state's nearly 41,000 active and inactive lawyers and other legal professionals. In furtherance of its obligation to ...

, 1996–1997, and the Washington State Trial Lawyers Association, 1985–1986.

References

External links

Personal websiteBiography on Washington State Courts website
1943 births 2013 deaths People from Yakima, Washington Lawyers from Seattle Justices of the Washington Supreme Court Washington State University alumni University of Washington School of Law alumni 21st-century American lawyers 21st-century American judges People from Wapato, Washington 20th-century American judges 20th-century American lawyers {{US-state-judge-stub