Marsha J. Pechman

Marsha J. Pechman (born 1951) is the Chief United States federal judge on the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington.

Born in Salem, Oregon, Pechman received a B.A. from Cornell University in 1973 and a J.D. from Boston University in 1976. She was a Legal intern, King County Prosecutor's Office, WA in 1976. She was a Deputy prosecutor, King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office, WA from 1976 to 1979. She was an Instructor/staff attorney of University of Washington School of Law from 1979 to 1981. She was in private practice in Seattle, WA from 1981 to 1988. She was an Adjunct professor, University of Puget Sound from 1983 to 1987. She was a judge on the King County Superior Court, WA from 1988 to 1999.

Pechman is a federal judge on the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington. Pechman was nominated by President Bill Clinton on March 24, 1999, to a seat vacated by William L. Dwyer. She was confirmed by the United States Senate on September 8, 1999, and received her commission on September 9, 1999. On September 1, 2011, she was elevated to Chief Judge, succeeding Judge Robert S. Lasnik.

Pechman is most well known for presiding over the 2008 trial between the City of Seattle and the owners of the Seattle SuperSonics.

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