Commencement Speakers
The 2025 law school commencement ceremony will take place on Saturday, May 17, 2025
Commencement Speaker: Justice Pate
Justice Jude Pate was born to Rupert and Suzanne Pate in Nuremberg, Germany where his family was stationed with the U.S. Army. His childhood years were spent primarily in Kansas, and he attended high school in the Netherlands. He earned a journalism degree from the University of Kansas and attended law school at Lewis & Clark Northwestern School of Law in Portland, Oregon. Justice Pate came to Alaska in 1993 and clerked for the Chief Judge of the Sitka Tribal Court, William Brady. He then served as legal counsel for the Sitka Tribe of Alaska, operated a private law practice, and was an assistant public defender. He was appointed to the Sitka Superior Court in 2018 by Governor Bill Walker. Governor Mike Dunleavy appointed him to the Alaska Supreme Court in 2023. He currently serves on the committees for Fairness, Diversity & Equality, Newer Judges Conference Planning, and Workplace Conduct. Justice Pate is married to Christine Pate and has two grown children, William and Joe, and a furry four-legged Bethel special named Oscar.