Debra L. Stephens

Debra Leigh Stephens (; born 1965) is an American lawyer who has served as the chief justice of the Washington Supreme Court since 2025. She previously served as chief justice from 2020 to 2021. She was appointed to the court in December 2007 by Governor Christine Gregoire and took office on January 1, 2008. She was elected by voters in 2008 and re-elected in 2014 and 2020. Prior to her appointment, Stephens served as a judge for Division Three of the Washington Court of Appeals and as an adjunct professor at Gonzaga University School of Law. She is the first judge from Division Three of the Court of Appeals to serve on the Washington State Supreme Court, and the first woman from Eastern Washington to do so. In 2012, she was inducted into its alumni Hall of Fame. She graduated from Gonzaga University and taught speech communication and coached the debate team at Spokane Falls Community College before entering Gonzaga University School of Law as a Thomas More Scholar. She earned her J.D. degree with honors, graduating summa cum laude in 1993.

On November 6, 2019, Stephens was unanimously selected to be the next Chief Justice of the Washington Supreme Court, following the retirement of Mary Fairhurst.

Stephens was re-elected as an associate justice in 2020 unopposed. She was succeeded as Chief Justice by Steven González on January 11, 2021.

Marriage and children Stephens and her husband, Craig, have been married since 1989, and have two children.