Judge Karl Williams: Professional Background and Legal Expertise

Hon. Karl Williams is a judge for the Pierce County District Court in Washington. He was elected to the bench in 2018.

Williams received a B.A. in political science from the University of Washington. He then completed a J.D. at the University of Puget Sound School of Law.

Prior to his election, Williams sat for twenty-two years as a pro tem judge in the Pierce County District Court. He was also a pro tem judge for Fife, Puyallup, and Ruston. In addition, Williams was a managing partner at Griffin & Williams and an arbitrator in the Pierce and King County Superior Courts.

His memberships included the Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association District/Municipal Court Liaison Committee (chair), the Tacoma Narrows Rotary Board, the NAACP, and the Tacoma-Pierce County Balck Collective.

Williams was also a Youth Protection Officer for Rotary District 5020, a volunteer for the Bar Association Free Legal Clinics and the YMCA Black Achievers Mock Trial Program, and a volunteer coach with the Metro, Pierce County, and University parks and the Boys & Girls Club of Pierce County.

Williams grew up in University Place. His father, who retired from the Air Force, ran a small business in Tacoma, and his mother was a faculty member at Fort Steilacoom Community College. He and his wife, Dannah, an academic advisor at the University of Washington Tacoma, have two children.