Elizabeth Stanley has been appointed as the new full-time Family Court Commissioner in Clallam County Superior Court. Her first day on the bench will be February 27, 2023.
The Clallam County Family Court Commissioner handles all family law matters except trials, which includes motions for temporary orders addressing parenting plans, child and spousal support, temporary property division, restraining orders, and settlement conferences. The Commissioner position also handles child-welfare cases (dependency matters), truancy At-Risk Youth hearings, and therapeutic courts which serve families.
Elizabeth was appointed by the Clallam County Superior Court judges, Brent Basden, Lauren Erickson, and Simon Barnhart, in a closed process. Applicants to the position were not disclosed to the public, nor were the Judge’s decision making processes. After selecting Elizabeth, the judges issued a press release describing her qualifications.
Elizabeth graduated cum laude with her law degree from American University in Washington, DC. She obtained her bachelor’s degree, also cum laude, from Barnard College of Columbia University in New York. She obtained her first law license in 2008 and was admitted to the Arizona Bar Association in 2010 (according to Arizona State Bar Association records). She was also admitted to the New York Bar Association. She was admitted to the Washington State Bar Association in 2016, and was also admitted to practice law in the Quileute Tribal Court.
Her most recent work has been as the the chief civil deputy in the Clallam County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, where she handled non-family law matters such as employment and land use law. Prior to that, she was the prosecutor and attorney for the Quileute Tribal Court. She worked as an Assistant Attorney General with the State of Arizona, where she did dependency work representing the State. In New York she worked as an Assistant Corporation Counsel in the New York City Law Department.