Aruna Masih named to Oregon Supreme Court

Aruna Masih, a long-time employment, worker, and civil rights attorney, is set to become the first Punjabi, Indian American and South Asian justice of the Oregon Supreme Court.

“Aruna Masih is a decorated civil rights attorney who has worked on behalf of Oregonians for over twenty-five years in both her career and community service,” said Governor Tina Kotek announcing her intent to appoint Masih on Aug 16 in Salem.

“As a practicing attorney, Aruna will bring direct and recent experience working for people — an invaluable perspective that will strengthen the current Oregon Supreme Court,” she stated.

“Aruna’s dedication to public service and passion for equal access to justice is also evident from her long-time leadership in advancing equity and diversity in the legal field. I look forward to seeing her continued service to Oregonians as a Supreme Court Justice.”

READ: Two Indian Americans named Superior Court judges in California (May 30, 2023)

“Equal access to the courts is an issue of civil rights,” said Masih, daughter of a Punjabi, Indian father and British mother, who has been a practicing attorney in Oregon for over 25 years.

“To meet the challenges of our society that the pandemic has undeniably made apparent, we must renew our purpose and redouble our efforts to create a justice system that is recognized by those who interact with it and are impacted by it to be respectful, accessible, and just,” she said.

“Over the last twenty-five years, I’ve represented the interests of hundreds of Oregonians, and I look forward to bringing my unique perspective to the Oregon Supreme Court,” Masih said. “I am committed to being a fair and thoughtful Justice and to continue being a steward of equal access under the law.”

READ: Indian American Shama Hakim Mesiwala makes history as California judge (February 28, 2023)

Masih’s parents were medical missionaries who modeled the importance of public service, commitment to a larger cause, and equitable access for all, according to her official profile.

Masih was born in New York. When she was six months old, her parents moved back to India to work at a rural, mission hospital in Punjab.

Her family called the hospital campus home for 15 years, and she attended Woodstock School, an international boarding school up in the Himalayas. Masih returned to the United States in high school.

Masih attends Calvary Presbyterian Church in NE Portland and enjoys playing women’s indoor soccer and futsal.

She is a founding member and Vice-President of the South Asian Bar Association of Oregon and currently serves on the Board of the Multnomah Bar Association and the Oregon Women Lawyers Foundation.

Masih has received the Multnomah Bar Association’s Diversity Award and an award of recognition from the Oregon Minority Lawyers Association for her work.

For most of her career, Masih has been a partner in the law firm of Bennett Hartman LLP, providing representation in a variety of areas, including employment, labor, appellate, professional licensure, contract, and constitutional law.

She has also represented clients at McKanna Bishop Joffe LLP. Her legal background features a significant breadth of subject matter and a depth of technical expertise in nuanced Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) and pension case law.

Masih has served as Chair of the Oregon State Bar’s Advisory Committee for Diversity and Inclusion and as Chair of the Labor and Employment Section.

Masih is also a former board member of the Oregon Women Lawyers and the Oregon Minority Lawyers Association. She is also an advisory board member for the Roseway Recovery Cafe, which serves community members in northeast Portland who have experienced trauma and the results of trauma, such as homelessness, substance use disorder, and addiction.

Masih regularly represents employees, labor unions, and joint labor-management trust funds in state and federal courts and before the administrative agencies charged with enforcing employee civil rights and labor rights.

Since 2003, Masih has been a part of her firm’s PERS team, representing the PERS Coalition of unions and public employees in their fight to preserve retirement benefits before the legislature and the courts.

She has testified as an expert witness about public pensions and represented public employees in all the major PERS cases decided by the Oregon Supreme Court since 2003.

She has also advised on and litigated election law matters, including ballot title challenges before the Oregon Supreme Court.

Masih has been involved with volunteer professional organizations because she believes that the Bar and law firms should afford attorneys from outside the dominant culture and women equitable opportunities for professional advancement, according to her profile.