September 22, 2014
Judge Matthew Williams will visit the Kyrgyz Republic September 21–27, 2014 to share his experience conducting jury trials in the United States with Kyrgyz judges and court officials, law students, law professors, and the Ministry of Justice. He will meet with key members of the legal community, give presentations to student groups and legal professionals, and conduct a mock trial demonstrating U.S. jury trial procedures at the American University in Central Asia (麻豆传媒).
Judge Williams is a King County District Court Judge in Washington State, which includes the city of Seattle. He has over 20 years of experience in U.S. law as a judge, prosecutor, private attorney, and law professor.
Jury trials for certain crimes will commence in the Kyrgyz Republic in 2015. Drawing on his extensive background, Judge Williams will seek to encourage a constructive dialogue among the Kyrgyz legal community that will facilitate successful implementation of jury trials that respect the rights of all citizens while serving justice with fairness, transparency, and equality.
Reference
Judge Williams Biography
Matthew W. Williams is a King County District Court Judge. He is currently assigned to the South Division Auburn Courthouse and handles both Criminal and Civil matters.
He began his legal career with the Nebraska, Iowa, and Washington State Attorneys General. In those offices, he handled a wide variety of cases ranging from death penalty/criminal appeals to complex commercial and tax litigation. Subsequently, he supervised drug and weapons interdiction efforts as a Federal Aviation Prosecutor while also trying cases involving aircraft crash and operational violations.
After leaving the federal government, he managed both governmental and private sector law offices. He was selected as the Managing Attorney of a large law office based in Pierce County, Washington. Subsequently, he served as a general manager with a national insurance carrier where he managed diverse business units across the United States implementing Best Practices and data driven decision-making processes.
Judge Williams holds a BS in Economics from the University of Nebraska (1980), and a JD from the University of Nebraska School of Law (1983).
Since 1991, he has served as an Adjunct Professor at Seattle University School of Law (University of Puget Sound) teaching both Trial and Pre-Trial Advocacy. He serves as the Director of the National Institute of Trial Advocacy (NITA) Northwest Regional Deposition program and has served many terms as faculty team leader at Emory Law School's renowned Kessler-Eidson Trial Techniques Program.
Judge Williams is an active volunteer in our community. He works with the Northwest Sarcoma Foundation, and serves as a board member of the Auburn Rotary. He served as a Special Disciplinary Counsel and as Investigative Counsel for the Washington State Bar Association. He is a former Trustee of the Washington Defense Trial Lawyers.
He is committed improving access to justice through out the world. He has led training for judges, advocates, and law enforcement personnel throughout the United States, as well in the Middle East, Central America, and Eastern Europe. He is a frequent speaker before local high schools, attorneys, and citizen groups, and has given over 500 presentations on issues related to our justice system.
Judge Williams served as a trainer of Law Enforcement and Private Sector personnel in the sciences of Collision Reconstruction and Forensics. He holds the rank of Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do and has served as a martial arts and personal defense instructor. He is a pilot and has logged hundreds of pilot-in-command hours throughout the United States.
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