Kymberly Evanson

Western District of Washington
	Ninth Circuit
Judgeships
	Posts: 7
	Judges: 7
	Vacancies: 0
Judges
	Chief: David G. Estudillo
	Active judges: Tiffany Cartwright, John Chun, David G. Estudillo, Kymberly Evanson, Lauren King, Tana Lin, Jamal Whitehead; Senior judges:; Robert Bryan, John Coughenour, Carolyn Dimmick, Richard Jones, Robert Lasnik, Ricardo Martinez, Marsha Pechman, James Robart, Barbara Rothstein, Benjamin Hale Settle, Thomas Zilly

Nomination Tracker
Nominee Information
	Name: Kymberly Evanson
	Court: United States District Court for the Western District of Washington
Progress
	Confirmed 363 days after nomination.
	Nominated: July 13, 2022
	ABA Rating: Well Qualified by a substantial majority/Qualified by a minority
	Questionnaire: Questionnaire
	Hearing: November 15, 2022
	Hearing Transcript: Hearing Transcript
	QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more)
	Reported: December 8, 2022 (initial nomination)/February 9, 2023 (second nomination)
	Confirmed: July 11, 2023
	Vote: 50-42

Kymberly Evanson is a judge on the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington. She was nominated to the court by President Joe Biden (D) on July 13, 2022, and confirmed by the United States Senate on July 11, 2023, by a vote of 50-42. Evanson will join the court upon receiving her judicial commission and taking her judicial oath.^[1]^[2]^[3] Evanson was one of 235 Article III judges nominated by President Joe Biden (D) and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. To see a full list of judges appointed by Joe Biden, click here.

The United States District Court for the Western District of Washington is one of 94 U.S. District Courts. They are the general trial courts of the United States federal courts. To learn more about the court, click here.

Prior to joining the court, Evanson was a partner at Pacifica Law Group in Seattle, Washington.^[1]

Judicial nominations and appointments

United States District Court for the Western District of Washington (2023-present)

See also: Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden

On July 13, 2022, President Joe Biden (D) nominated Evanson to the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington.^[4] The president renominated Evanson on January 23, 2023. Evanson received commission on July 18, 2023.^[2] To read more about the federal nominations process, click here.

Confirmation vote

The U.S. Senate confirmed Evanson by a vote of 50-42 on July 11, 2023.^[2] To see a full breakdown of the vote on the official U.S. Senate website, click here.

Evanson confirmation vote (July 11, 2023)
Party	Yea	Nay	No vote
Democratic	45	0	3
Republican	3	42	4
Independent	2	0	1
Total	50	42	8

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

In a committee hearing on February 9, 2023, Abudu was reported to the full Senate, after a 12-9 committee vote.^[3] Click here for a list of other nominees awaiting a committee hearing.

The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on Evanson's nomination on November 15, 2022. Evanson was reported to the full Senate on December 8, 2022, after a 12-10 committee vote.^[5]

Nomination

President Biden nominated Evanson on July 13, 2022, to succeed Judge Ricardo S. Martinez.^[4]

Evanson's nomination was returned to the president at the sine die adjournment of the U.S. Senate on January 3, 2023.^[6] The president renominated Evanson on January 23, 2023.^[2]

The American Bar Association (ABA) rated Evanson Well Qualified by a substantial majority/Qualified by a minority.^[7] To read more about ABA ratings, click here.

Biography

Education

Evanson obtained a B.A., magna cum laude, in French and humanities from Seattle University in 1999. She earned a J.D., cum laude, from the Georgetown University Law Center in 2007.^[8]

Professional career

2023-present: Judge, United States District Court for the Western District of Washington
2011-2023: Partner, Pacifica Law Group
2009-2011: Associate attorney, K&L Gates
2007-2008: Law clerk to Judge Emmet Sullivan, United States District Court for the District of Columbia^[1]

About the court

The United States District Court for the Western District of Washington is one of 94 United States district courts. The district operates out of courthouses in Seattle and Tacoma, Wash. When decisions of the court are appealed, they are appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit based in downtown San Francisco at the James R. Browning Federal Courthouse, but hears initial appeals at the Pioneer Federal Courthouse in Portland, Oregon.

The Western District of Washington has original jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.

The geographic jurisdiction of the Western District of Washington consists of all the following counties in the western part of the state of Washington. The court's headquarters are in Seattle, with a courthouse in Tacoma.

The federal nomination process

Federal judges are nominated by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate. There are multiple steps to the process:

The president nominates an individual for a judicial seat.
The nominee fills out a questionnaire and is reviewed by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing with the nominee, questioning them about things like their judicial philosophy, past rulings or opinions, etc.

As part of this process, the committee sends a blue slip to senators from the home state in which the judicial nomination was received, allowing them to express their approval or disapproval of the nominee.

After the hearing, the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote to approve or return the nominee.

If approved, the nominee is voted on by the full Senate.
If the Committee votes to return the nominee to the president, the president has the opportunity to re-nominate the individual.

The Senate holds a vote on the candidate.

If the Senate confirms the nomination, the nominee receives a commission to serve a lifelong position as a federal judge.
If the Senate does not confirm the nomination, that nominee does not become a judge.