Circuit Court Alert:
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, 1990 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 (now named Antonin Scalia Law School)
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 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