Hon. Stephen K. Bushong is a justice of the Oregon Supreme Court. He was appointed to the seat by former Kate Brown on January 1, 2023, filling the vacancy created by the retirement of the Hon. Thomas A. Balmer (Ret.).
Prior to his appointment, Bushong presided as a judge for the 4th Judicial District Circuit Court in Multnomah County (2008 to 2022). During his tenure on the Circuit Court, he served as Chief Civil Judge and the Presiding Judge of the 4th Judicial District.
Before beginning his judicial career, he was an assistant attorney general with the Oregon Department of Justice (1994 to 2008). During his tenure there, Bushong was the attorney-in-charge of the Special Litigation Unit and chief trial counsel of the Trial Division.
He joined the office after briefly managing his own private practice (1993 to 1994). Bushong opened his law firm after practicing in the litigation department at Miller, Nash, Wiener, Hager & Carlsen in Portland (1985 to 1993).
He received a B.A. from the University of Michigan in 1980. Bushong went on to complete a J.D. at the University of Michigan Law School in 1984. He was admitted to practice in Oregon in 1985.
After graduating from law school, Bushong began his legal career as a judicial law clerk to the Hon. Marc L. Goldman with the United States District Court for the District of Michigan (1984 to 1985).
He served on the Oregon Law Commission and sat as a member of the Uniform Trial Court Rules Committee and as chair of the Multnomah Bar Association’s Professionalism Committee. Active with the Oregon State Bar, Bushong was also a member of its Uniform Civil Jury Instruction Committee and the Litigation and Government Law Section Executive Committees.
He has authored chapters on Civil Pleading and Practice and Oregon Constitutional Law for Oregon State Bar publications and submits articles on significant Oregon cases for its Litigation Journal.
