ALEXANDRIA, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Judge Anna J. Brown has been recognized with the prestigious 2017 American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the Ninth Circuit. She will be presented with the award by Judge Mary M. Schroeder at the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference in San Francisco on July 17.

Brown has served on the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon since her appointment by President William J. Clinton in 1999. Prior, she served two terms on the Multnomah County, Oregon, Circuit Court, having been appointed by Oregon Governor Barbara Roberts. Before being appointed to the bench, Brown was in private practice at the Portland firm of Bullivant Houser Bailey.

In her 25 years as a trial judge, Brown has presided over numerous complex civil and criminal jury trials, including Williams v. Philip Morris, Oregon’s first tobacco product-liability jury trial; and two multi-defendant jury trials arising from the 2016 occupation of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.

Brown is president of the 9th Circuit District Judges Association, speaks frequently on programs for new trial judges, and currently serves on the Court Administration and Case Management Committee of the U.S. Judicial Conference. She is a past member and officer of the Gus. J. Solomon American Inn of Court, has served as chair of the Oregon State Bar Uniform Civil and Criminal Jury Instructions Committees and the 9th Circuit Jury Instructions and Jury Trial Improvement Committees, and is a founding member of Oregon Women Judges in conjunction with Oregon Women Lawyers and the U.S. District Court of Oregon Historical Society.

While working full-time as a 911 operator, Brown earned her bachelor’s degree from Portland State University. Attending law school at night, she earned a J.D. from Northwestern School of Law (now Lewis & Clark Law School). She served as law clerk to Multnomah County Circuit Judge John C. Beatty, Jr.

The American Inns of Court, headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, inspires the legal community to advance the rule of law by achieving the highest level of professionalism through example, education, and mentoring. The organization’s membership includes more than 30,000 federal, state, and local judges; lawyers; law professors; and law students in more than 360 chapters nationwide and more than 100,000 alumni members. More information is available at www.innsofcourt.org.