Oregon Supreme Court justice to retire; Gov. Brown seeks applicants for vacancy

SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) — Gov. Kate Brown announced Monday she is accepting applications to fill a vacancy on the Oregon Supreme Court created by the upcoming retirement of Justice Lynn Nakamoto.

The governor thanked Justice Nakamoto for her dedicated judicial service. The retirement of Justice Nakamoto is effective Dec. 31, 2021, and the appointee will begin service immediately thereafter.

Interested applicants should mail (no hand delivery) an Appellate/Supreme Court Interest form to: Dustin Buehler, General Counsel, Office of the Governor, 900 Court Street NE, Suite 254, Salem, OR 97301-4047. Forms must be received by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, August 30, 2021. Forms emailed by 5:00 p.m. on the closing date will be considered timely if original signed forms postmarked by the closing date are later received. You must use the Appellate/Supreme Court Interest form and not the Circuit Court Interest form.

Governor Brown fills judicial vacancies based on merit, the announcement stated. She encourages applications from lawyers with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences.

ORS 2.020 provides that a judge of the Supreme Court must be a citizen of the United States, have resided in Oregon for at least three years before their appointment, and have been admitted to practice in Oregon before standing for election.

For questions about the appointment process, or to request an interest form, contact Shevaun Gutridge at 503-378-6246 or shevaun.gutridge@oregon.gov.

The Appellate/Supreme Court Judicial Interest Form is available online.