2015 American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the Ninth Circuit - The Hon. Robert J. Bryan

Judge Robert J. Bryan has been awarded the prestigious 2015 American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the Ninth Circuit. The award was presented on July 13th, 2015 at the Ninth Circuit's Annual Judicial Conference in San Diego.

The American Inns of Court Professionalism Awards are bestowed upon a lawyer or judge whose life and practice display sterling character, unquestioned integrity, and dedication to the highest standards of the legal profession. 

Robert J. Bryan is U.S. District Judge for the Western District of Washington in Tacoma. He was appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1986, and took senior status in 2000. Judge Bryan spent the majority of his career in an elected capacity as a Washington State Superior Court judge. He was appointed to Kitsap County Superior Court by Governor Dan Evans in 1967, and successfully ran for re-election. He has served as judge protempore for the Washington State Court of Appeals and justice pro tem for the Washington State Supreme Court.

Since ascending to the district bench, Judge Bryan has served as a member of the Ninth Circuit Judicial Council and as president of the Ninth Circuit District Judges' Association. He was a founding member of the Puget Sound American Inn of Court, renamed The Honorable Robert J. Bryan American Inn of Court. This is a well deserved award.

2006 American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the Ninth Circuit - Chief Justice Gerry Alexander

In 2006, Chief Justice Gerry L. Alexander of the Washington Supreme Court was recognized for a lifetime of service to the law during the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference. He received the 2006 American Inns of Court Ninth Circuit Professionalism Award, which recognizes a senior practicing lawyer or judge whose life and practice display sterling character and unquestioned integrity, coupled with ongoing to the highest standards of the legal profession.

Justice Alexander has given more than three decades of service to the state courts of Washington. He was a judge of the superior court for Thurston and Mason counties from 1973 through 1984, and a judge of the Washington Court of Appeals, Division Two, from 1985 through 1994. Voters elected him to the Washington Supreme Court in 1994. Following re-election in 2000, his colleagues on the Supreme Court voted him to a six-year position as chief justice. He was re-elected in 2006. Justice Alexander retired at age 75 in 2010 due to the Court's age limit.

Justice Alexander chaired the Advisory Commission on Washington Law Reports, the Bench-Bar-Press Committee of the State of Washington, and the board for Judicial Administration. He is a co-founder and board member of the Washington Courts Historical Society. This is a well deserved award.