The King County Bar Association is pleased to honor Justice Mary Yu with the 2024 Outstanding Justice Award for her distinguished service to the legal profession, the judiciary, and the public.
Justice Yu was raised in the south side of Chicago by immigrant parents; her mother came from Mexico and her father from China. Justice Yu was the first in her family to graduate from college, earning her bachelor’s degree from Dominican University and her master’s degree in religious studies from Mundelein College of Loyola University. Justice Yu graduated from the University of Notre Dame’s law school in 1993. Prior to law school, Justice Yu worked in the Office of Peace and Justice for the Archdiocese of Chicago, initially hired as a secretary and eventually becoming the Director of the Office of Peace and Justice.
Justice Yu moved to Seattle and worked in the King County Prosecutor’s Office civil and criminal divisions where she earned the position of Deputy Chief of Staff. In 2000, Justice Yu was elected to the King County Superior Court bench where she presided over civil and criminal trials and hundreds of adoptions and other family law matters for fourteen years. In 2014, Justice Yu was appointed to the Washington Supreme Court by Governor Jay Inslee and retained by the voters in subsequent elections. Justice Yu is the first Asian, the first Latina, and the first member of the LGBTQ+ community to serve on the Washington Supreme Court. Justice Yu was the eleventh women ever to serve on Washington’s Supreme Court and she has been on the state Superior Court and Supreme Court benches for nearly 25 years receiving several honors and awards for her exemplary service.
In addition to serving on the state’s highest court, Justice Yu finds time to mentor young attorneys, law clerks, and law students. Justice Yu worked with the Seattle Girls’ Mock Trial Team for 17 years and has also mentored 250 law graduates, including several law clerks for her and other justices at the Supreme Court. Justice Yu has devoted significant time and energy to mentoring young lawyers from historically underrepresented communities, including women, people of color and people with disabilities. Her work has assisted and inspired talented people from varying backgrounds to succeed in the legal profession.
Justice Yu served as a distinguished jurist in residence and teacher at Seattle University School of Law and co-chaired the Leadership Institute of the University of Washington, Washington Bar Association, and the Washington Supreme Court’s Minority and Justice Commission. She also chaired the Board for Judicial Administration’s Public Trust and Confidence Committee and served on the board of FareStart. Justice Yu is a member of the American Law Institute and in 2021 Seattle University School of Law established the Justice May I. Yu Endowment Scholarship Fund recognizing Justice Yu’s devotion to encouraging the next generation of advocates for justice.
Based upon her outstanding career dedicated to the legal profession, public service, and honoring the rights of individuals, Justice Yu is the deserving recipient of the KCBA’s 2024 Outstanding Judge award.
Martin Pujolar is Shareholder at Forsberg & Umlauf, P.S. and a member of the KCBA Awards Committee.
