Judge Viet-Hanh Winchell

Appointed/Elected:

Appointed on May 13, 2024, by Governor Tim Walz. Current term expires Jan. 2027.

Education:

J.D., Hamline University School of Law
B.A., University of Minnesota

Past Employment:

• Solo practitioner, United Rivers Law Firm PLLC
• Qualified Neutral, alternative dispute resolution
• Court-appointed counsel, parents in child protection cases
• Court-appointed counsel, guardianship and conservatorship cases
• Shareholder, Galowitz Olson, PLLC f/k/a Lawson Law Firm

Community Activities:

• Member, Domestic and Sexual Violence Judicial Leadership Workgroup
• Volunteer, local Parent Teacher Association
• Member, Minnesota Asian Pacific American Bar Association
• Member, National Asian Pacific American Bar Association
• Member, Minnesota District Judges Association
• Planning Committee, The Justice Esther M. Tomljanovich Annual Celebration of Women in Law, Mitchell Hamline School of Law
• Former member, Commission on Judicial Selection
• Former pro bono legal services and advisory board member, Tubman Safety Project
• Former Member, Ramsey County and Washington County Children’s Justice Initiative
• Former president, Washington County Bar Association
• Former president, Wisconsin Nonresident Lawyer Division
• Former Minnesota chapter president, Wisconsin Nonresident Lawyer Division

Additional Information:

• Judge Winchell is the first Vietnamese American state court judge in Minnesota
• Other languages: Vietnamese and French