New appeals court judge named

Debra Stephens was the first in her family to graduate from college. She was also the first attorney. Now she’s the first judge.

Gov. Chris Gregoire announced her selection Tuesday of Stephens to replace Judge Ken Kato on Division III Court of Appeals. Gregoire picked the appellate attorney over two sitting Spokane County Superior Court judges and other experienced attorneys.

“She has, in my opinion, the perfect judicial temperament, and integrity beyond reproach,” Gregoire said of Stephens. “So I believe she will be an able addition to what is already a terrific court.”

Stephens’ appointment will begin on May 14. She replaces Kato, who stepped down in February. He was appointed to the state appellate bench in 1997 to replace retiring Judge Philip Thompson. Kato retired almost two years before his six-year term was set to expire in 2008.

“She’s top-notch,” Kato said. “She’s not an egghead. In this job, you have to have a good legal mind and an avid sense of humor.”

Gregoire picked Stephens – who contributed $100 in August 2003 to the governor’s successful $6.3 million campaign – over Superior Court Judges Tari Eitzen and Linda Tompkins. Also under consideration were Deputy Spokane County Prosecutors Brian O’Brien and Kevin Korsmo, and local attorney Louis Rukavina.

“I have consulted with many others about (Stephens’) quality,” Gregoire said. “Without exception everybody says she that she clearly is eloquent, always well-prepared … very adept at responding to any questions the court can ask of her on the spot. She brings to the bench, in my opinion, a brilliant legal mind.”

Stephens is a lifelong Spokane resident and graduate of Gonzaga University School of Law. She thanked the governor in a room packed with about 140 of her colleagues and family members.

“I’ve been in the court so many times before, but I’ve never been at a loss for words. This is one of those moments where if you don’t write it down you might not know your children’s names,” she said.

Stephens sees her role as judge as one of the most important in American society, she said.

“I think appellate judges are uniquely entrusted with being scholars and stewards of the law but at the same time keeping it real, making it relevant and meaningful to real people and real problems,” she said.

Too often legal opinions are written in a language foreign to how families talk around the dinner table, she said.

“The law can do so much good that it is to be cherished and respected,” she said. “And we have to work hard to maintain that.”

On the Division III bench, Stephens joins Chief Judge Dennis Sweeney, Acting Chief Judge John Schultheis, Judge Stephen Brown and Judge Teresa Kulik.

Stephens and her husband, Craig Stephens, have two children, Lindsey and Bob.

“If they don’t become lawyers, it was because I have beaten it out of them,” she said to laughter.

Stephens’ brother-in-law is Lt. Scott Stephens of the Spokane Police Department.

Outside the courtroom, Debra Stephens serves on the Spokane Valley Rotary Club and has served as both a deacon and an elder at Millwood Community Presbyterian Church. She also chairs the Orchard Prairie School District board.

She started working on appellate cases in 1995, and she credited a colleague, attorney Bryan Harnetiaux, for putting her in a position to be selected to replace Kato.

“I’m humbled when I look at what this appointment means, not only to me but this community,” Stephens said. “We have a responsibility as lawyers to make the legal system accessible. I pledge to listen, to work hard and give my best.”