Letter from the Fairfax Circuit Court Dated August 14, 2020

Penney S. Azcarate
(Chief Judge)

Judicial Circuit: 19th
College: Old Dominion University
Law School: George Mason University School of Law
Date Sworn In: June 15, 2015

Randy I. Bellows

Judicial Circuit: 19th
College: University of Florida
Law School: Harvard Law School
Date Sworn In: October 15, 2002

Robert J. Smith

Judicial Circuit: 19th
College: B.A., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Law School: The John Marshall Law School, Chicago, Illinois
Date Sworn In: February 1, 2008
Judge Smith served as the Senior Assistant Public Defender in Fairfax County from July 1, 1987 until November 18, 1990.  Prior to that Judge Smith served on active duty with the United States Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps.  Judge Smith was a Judge of the Fairfax County General District Court from November 19, 1987 until February 1, 2008.  On February 2, 2008, Judge Smith was sworn in as a Judge of the Fairfax County Circuit Court.  On September 1, 2009, Judge Smith retired as a Colonel from the United States Army Reserve after thirty years of service.  At his retirement he was the Chief Trial Judge of the United States Army Reserve.  Judge Smith is an Adjunct Professor of Law at George Washington University Law School.

Brett A. Kassabian

Judicial Circuit Court: 19th
College: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Law School: Wake Forest University School of Law
Date Sworn In: February 1, 2010

Michael F. Devine

Judicial Circuit Court: 19th
College: State University of New York at Stony Brook
Law School: University of Virginia School of Law
Date Sworn In: April 1, 2010

John M. Tran

Judicial Circuit Court: 19th
College: The George Washington University
Law School: The George Washington University Law School
Date Sworn In: June 27, 2013
The son of a South Vietnamese diplomat and an immigrant who found refuge in the United States, Judge Tran has spent his entire adult life in the Washington Metropolitan Area and proudly considers himself a Virginian. He is a product of the Arlington County public schools and before entering private practice, served as a state and later federal prosecutor in the City of Alexandria. He was President of the Asian American Bar Association of Virginia, a member of the Virginia State Bar Council and on the faculty of the Harry S. Carrico Professionalism Course. Prior to joining the Circuit Court, Judge Tran served as a substitute judge in the General District Courts and Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Courts throughout Northern Virginia for five years.

Grace Burke Carroll

Judicial Circuit: 19th
College: Randolph-Macon College
Law School: George Mason University School of Law
Date Sworn In: November 19, 2014

Stephen C. Shannon

Judicial Circuit: 19th
College: Fairfield University; Georgetown University
Law School: University of Virginia School of Law
Date Sworn In: June 19, 2015

Richard E. Gardiner

Judicial Circuit Court: 19th
College: Union College
Law School: George Mason University School of Law
Date Sworn In: November 1, 2016

David Bernhard

Judicial Circuit Court: 19th
College: Brandeis University, B.A. - Economics, Political Science
Law School: Washington University in St. Louis School of Law, J.D.
Date Sworn In: June 30, 2017

David A. Oblon

Judicial Circuit Court: 19th
College: George Washington University
Law School: George Mason University School of Law
Date Sworn In: December 21, 2017
Prior to joining the Circuit Court, Judge Oblon served as a Substitute Judge in the General District Courts for almost a decade and served as a Commissioner in Chancery. He co-founded and, for its twenty-two-year existence, managed the law firm Albo & Oblon, LLP. At its largest, the firm had six offices and twenty lawyers. It produced a United States Congressman, two state legislators, and four judges. Judge Oblon’s personal practice included civil business litigation and criminal law. A prolific continuing legal education lecturer, he presented over 30 programs to lawyers and judges. He presently serves on the board of the the Fairfax Law Foundation, was elected to three terms on the Virginia State Bar Council, and was Chairman of both the Arlington County Bar Foundation and the Arlington Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program (“VASAP”). He served two terms on the Arlington County Bar Association board. In the wider community, he engaged in many civic and religious leadership activities, such as Cub Scouts and the PTA.

Dontaé L. Bugg

Judicial Circuit Court: 19th
College: University of Maryland
Law School: T. C. Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond
Date Sworn In: March 15, 2019

Tania M. L. Saylor

Judicial Circuit Court: 19th
College: University of Virginia
Law School: The George Washington University Law School
Date Sworn In: June 28, 2021

Christie A. Leary

Judicial Circuit Court: 19th
College: College of William and Mary
Law School: George Mason University – School of Law
Date Sworn In: March 1, 2022

Manuel A. Capsalis

Judicial Circuit: 19th
College: Duke University
Graduate School: George Mason University
Law School: George Mason University School of Law
Date Sworn In: July 20, 2022

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