How Does the Washington Superior Court Work?

Washington Superior Court is a trial court that hears criminal appeals and civil cases brought before it. The Superior Court also serves as an appellate court and presides over appeal cases from the District and Municipal Courts in the same county as the superior court. Notwithstanding, following the court structure, Superior Courts are lower than the Courts of Appeal, and any grievance resolved in the Washington Superior Courts can be appealed to a Court of Appeal if one of the parties involved is discontented with the judgment passed.

The Superior Court also has exclusive jurisdiction over civil cases. The amount involved is over $75,000, family law cases, probate cases, mental commitment cases, felony cases, and juvenile court proceedings that occur in the county.

Nonpartisan elections, held every four years, select the Washington Superior Court judges. Qualified persons must be an attorney admitted into practice in Washington and under 75 years of age. A new Superior Court judge can be selected by appointment upon the resignation, retirement, removal, or death of the sitting judge before completing the four-year term. The governor makes Washington’s appointment, and the new judge serves as the sitting judge until a new election takes place.

There are currently 186 presiding judges in the 38 Superior Courts in Washington, and each is to serve a four-year term. It is a requirement that a Washington judge retires at the age of 75. A sitting judge of a superior court who attains this age during the tenure is to retire at the end of the same year. The retirement is followed by a new judge’s appointment to serve until a new election occurs.

There are 38 Superior Courts in the counties in Washington with Benton and Franklin counties sharing a single Superior Court. However, some superior courts share a single judge who presides over the superior court in those counties and alternates between each one weekly. Listed below are the court names and contact addresses:

Adams County Superior Court
210 W Broadway Ave Ritzville,
WA 99169–1860
Phone: (509) 659–3271
Fax: (509) 659–0118

Asotin County Superior Court
135 2nd St Asotin,
WA 99402
Phone: (509) 243–2081
Fax: (509) 243–4978

Benton/Franklin Superior Court
7122 W Okanogan Pl,
Bldg A Kennewick,
WA 99336–2359
Phone: (509) 736–3071

Chelan Superior Court
401 Washington St,
Fl 5 Wenatchee,
WA 98801–4197

Clallam Superior Court
223 E 4th St,
Ste 8 Port Angeles,
WA 98362–3015
Phone: (360) 417–2231

Clark Superior Court
1200 Franklin St Vancouver,
WA 98660–2812
Phone: (564) 397-2150

Columbia County Superior Court
341 E Main St Suite 4,
Dayton,
WA 99328,
United States
Phone: (509) 382–4321
Fax: (509) 382–4830

Cowlitz Superior Court
312 SW 1st Ave,
Fl 2 Kelso,
WA 98626–1739
Phone: (360) 577–3085

Douglas Superior Court
203 S Rainier Waterville,
WA 98858
Phone: (360) 577–3085

Ferry Superior Court
350 E Delaware Ave Republic,
WA 99166–9747
Phone: (509) 775–5225

Garfield Superior Court
789 Main Street Pomeroy,
WA 99347
Phone: (509) 843–3731

Grant Superior Court
35 C St NW,
Fl 2 Ephrata,
WA 98823–1685
Phone: (509) 754–2011
Fax: (509)754–6036

Grays Harbour County Superior Court
102 W Broadway Ave,
Room 305 Montesano,
WA 98563–3621
Phone: (360) 249–5311

Island County Superior Court
101 NE 6th St,
Fl 1 Coupeville,
WA 98239
Phone: (360) 679–7325
Fax: (360) 678–2139

Jefferson Superior Court
1820 Jefferson St Port Townsend,
WA 98368–0920

King County Superior Court
516 3rd Ave,
Rm C–203 Seattle,
WA 98104–2361
Phone: (206) 296–0100

Kitsap County Superior Court
614 Division St,
MS 24 Port Orchard,
WA 98366–4683

Kittitas County Superior Court
205 W 5th Ave,
Ste 207 Ellensburg,
WA 98926–2887
Phone: (509) 962–7533

Klickitat Superior Court
205 S. Columbus Ave,
Rm 206 Goldendale,
WA 98620–9279
Phone: (509) 773–5744

Lewis County Superior Court
345 W Main St,
Fl 4 Chehalis,
WA 98532–0336
Phone: (360) 740–1333

Lincoln County Superior Court
450 Logan St Davenport,
WA 99122
Phone: (509) 725–3081

Mason County Superior Court
419 N 4th St,
Fl 2 Shelton,
WA 98584–3419
Phone: (360) 427–9670 extension 348

Okanagan Superior Court
149 3rd N Okanogan,
WA 98840

Pacific County Superior Court
300 Memorial Drive South Bend,
WA 98586
Phone: (360) 875–9328

Pend Oreille County Superior Court
229 S Garden Ave Newport,
WA 99156
Phone: (509) 447-2435

Pierce County Superior Court
930 Tacoma Ave S,
Rm 334 Tacoma,
WA 98402–2108
Phone: (253) 798–7455

San Juan County Superior Court
350 Court St,
#7 Friday Harbor,
WA 98250–7901

Skagit County Superior Court
205 W Kincaid St,
Rm 202 Mount Vernon,
WA 98273–4225
Phone: (360) 416–1200

Skamania County Superior Court
240 Vancouver Ave Stevenson,
WA 98648–6447
Phone: (509) 427–3770

Snohomish County Superior Court
3000 Rockefeller Ave,
MS 502 Everett,
WA 98201–4046

Spokane County Superior Court
1116 W Broadway Ave Spokane,
WA 99260–0350
Phone: (509) 477–5790

Stevens County Superior Court
215 S Oak St,
Rm 209 Colville,
WA 99114–2862
Phone: (509) 684–7527
Fax: (509) 685–0679

Thurston County Superior Court
2000 Lakeridge Drive SW,
Bldg 2 Olympia,
WA 98502
Phone: (360) 786–5560

Wakhiakum County Superior Court
64 Main St Cathlamet,
WA 98612

Walla Walla Superior Court
315 W Main St,
Fl 3 Walla Walla,
WA 99362–2864

Whatcom County Superior Court
311 Grand Ave,
Ste 301 Bellingham,
WA 98225–4048

Whitman County Superior Court
400 N Main St Colfax,
WA 99111–2031
Phone: (509) 397–4622

Yakima County Superior Court
128 N 2nd St,
Rm 314 Yakima,
WA 98901–2639

A couple of Washington Superior Courts have websites from which court case records can be accessed. Some other Superior Courts in Washington may not allow online access to court case records. Interested parties may have to pay a visit to the court’s location to obtain case files. Court documents in each superior court are preserved by the Office of the Court Clerk location within the Superior Courts.

However, certain court case records may not be available to public access either online or physically due to a court’s restriction. However, persons interested in obtaining such records may get a court order from the Superior Courts.

The time duration to completing a case from filing to final disposition varies for each county. The average amount of time a court case takes is 85 days. The Chelan County Superior Court was recorded to have the most prolonged duration for court cases, as it had an average of 549 days from the filing of a court case to its resolution.