-- Special Sitting Held to Administer Oath of Office to Chief Judge -- 
 
WASHINGTON, DC – Judge Eric T. Washington, in a special sitting of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals at 2:00 p.m. on August 5, 2005, took the oath of office as the court’s Chief Judge, effective August 6, 2005.  Chief Judge Washington said, “I am grateful to my predecessor and mentor, Judge Annice Wagner for her skillful leadership of the District of Columbia Courts.  Along with Chief Judge King and the entire court family I intend to work tirelessly toward achieving our vision of being a court system that is open to all, trusted by all, with justice for all.”  As chief judge, he also becomes the chair of the Joint Committee on Judicial Administration, the policy-making body for the District of Columbia Courts. 
 
Chief Judge Washington was appointed to the DC Superior Court in 1995 and to the Court of Appeals in 1999.  Chief Judge Washington served as co-chair of the DC Courts’ Strategic Planning Leadership Council, which developed a five-year strategic plan for the Courts.  He has been a member of the DC Courts Access to Justice Commission, the Standing Committee on Fairness and Access to the DC Courts, and other court committees. 
 
Chief Judge Washington graduated from Tufts University and received his J.D. from Columbia University School of Law.  He was an associate at Fulbright & Jaworski in Houston, Texas, prior to moving to Washington, DC, to serve as Legislative Director and Counsel to US Representative Mike Andrews of Texas.  After rejoining the firm and practicing law in its Washington, DC, office for several years, Chief Judge Washington served as the Principal Deputy Corporation Counsel for the District (now Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia).  Chief Judge Washington then became a partner at the law firm of Hogan & Hartson prior to his appointment to the bench.  Chief Judge Washington and his wife, Sheryl, reside in the District and have three children.