Referee Benjamin Johnston Judicial Profile

by Bridget Donegan MBA Court Liaison Committee

Judge Benjamin Johnston has been on the Multnomah County bench since 2015, a role that brings him joy and deep satisfaction in working with people from all walks of life every day. After spending his career helping individuals in court as a defense attorney, Judge Johnston finds his current role a natural fit. A judicial referee and pro tem judge on the high-volume civil and criminal dockets, he is one of 10 judges rotating between different specialty courts: criminal arraignments, small claims court, forcible entry and detainer (FED, or evictions), civil commitments, DUII diversion court, and traffic court. These dockets are fast paced, and several involve overwhelmingly pro se litigants on at least one side of each case. Judge Johnston finds it suits him to be dealing with people and their everyday problems.

Originally from Utah, Judge Johnston worked his way through college at the University of Utah doing residential and light commercial painting jobs. He studied economics and Japanese, studying abroad there for a year. His time in Japan has influenced him on the bench. He recalls living there as an adult, but with only the language ability of a third grader - “you can understand concepts,” he explains, “but lack the language,” something he sees regularly in litigants who understand well the important facts and concepts of their situation but find themselves in the foreign world of a court of law unable to express their ideas.