Mary Yu | |
|---|---|
| Associate Justice of theWashington Supreme Court | |
| Assumed office May 20, 2014 | |
| Appointed by | Jay Inslee |
| Preceded by | James Johnson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Mary Isabel Yu 1957 (age 67–68) Chicago,Illinois, U.S. |
| Education | Dominican University (BA) Loyola University Chicago (MA) University of Notre Dame (JD) |
Mary Isabel Yu[1] (born 1957) is an American lawyer who has served as an associate justice of theWashington Supreme Court since 2014. She served as a judge of theKing County Superior Court from 2000 to 2014. She is the state's first openly gay justice, as well as the firstAsian American and first Latina justice.[2]
Yu was born inChicago,Illinois to aChinese father andMexican mother.[3] She graduated from St. Mary's High School in 1975.[4] Yu then attendedDominican University and graduated in 1979 with a degree intheology.[4] In 1989, Yu earned a graduate degree in theology fromMundelein of Loyola University.[4]
After completing her undergraduate education, Yu went to work for theRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago.[5] She was initially hired byRev.Francis J. Kane as asecretary for the Office of Peace and Justice for the Archdiocese of Chicago, but eventually rose to become director of the Office of Peace and Justice.[4][6]
Yu enrolled atNotre Dame Law School in 1990.[6] She graduated with herJ.D. degree in 1993.[4]
In 1999,King County Prosecuting AttorneyNorm Maleng named Yu as his deputy chief of staff.[3]
In 2000,Washington GovernorGary Locke appointed Yu to replace retiring judge Janice Niemi on theKing County Superior Court.[7]
Yu was considered a leading contender to replace JusticeBobbe Bridge on theWashington Supreme Court when Bridge retired in December 2007.[8] Ultimately, GovernorChristine Gregoire appointedDebra L. Stephens to fill the vacancy.[8]
On December 9, 2012, at midnight, Mary Yu officiated the firstsame-sex marriages in Washington state.[9] Judge Yu's name (coincidentally pronounced as "marry you") was deemed "the perfect name for the job" byThe Stranger columnistDominic Holden.[10]
On May 1, 2014, Judge Yu was appointed by Washington GovernorJay Inslee to theWashington Supreme Court, making her the first openlyLGBTQ member of the court, in addition to the first Latina-American andAsian-American.[11] She is the 11th woman to serve on the Washington Supreme Court (and one of six currently serving), the first person of Asian descent, the third person of Hispanic descent, and the first Hispanic woman.[12] Yu, who is openly gay, is also the firstLGBT person to hold this position.[13] Yu is one of tenLGBT state supreme court justices currently serving in the United States.
She was sworn in on May 20, 2014 as an associate justice of theWashington Supreme Court.[14][15] Justice Yu ran unopposed in 2015 to complete the term and was the highest vote getter in the State.[16] Justice Yu was subsequently elected to the Supreme Court for a six-year term in 2016.
In October 2018, Yu joined the majority when the court abolished thestate's death penalty because they found its racist imposition violated theConstitution of Washington.[17][18]
Yu resides in Seattle and in Olympia.[19] On March 16, 2021, she appeared onJimmy Kimmel Live! where she was recognized for theappropriateness of her name as she also is a frequentwedding officiant.[20] On May 24, 2022, she threw the ceremonial first pitch for a game between the Seattle Mariners and Oakland Athletics.[21]
Yu is a Distinguished Jurist in Residence atSeattle University School of Law.[22] In 1984, Yu received the Caritas Veritas award from Dominican University, as an alumna exemplifying a search for truth through charity or service.[23]
| Legal offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Justice of theWashington Supreme Court 2014–present | Incumbent |
Statewide elected officials and legislative leaders ofWashington | ||
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| U.S. senators |  | |
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