Honourable Justice Kathleen M. Salii
Presiding Justice Supreme Court Trial Division Palau
Justice Kathleen M. Salii, the longest serving justice in the Palau Supreme Court, was appointed by Chief Justice Oldiais Ngiraikelau to serve as Presiding Justice of the Trial Division on August 19, 2020, with primary duties being to oversee case management of the trial courts in addition to carrying a full docket. Since joining the bench and in addition to presiding over cases, Justice Salii represents the Palau Judiciary in various organizations, both locally and internationally, with the goal of ensuring continuing judicial legal education and gender equality in the courts; such organizations include the Pacific Judicial Council’s
Education Committee, the International Association of Women Judges, and most recently, the Pacific Islands Judicial Officers Association’s Executive Council.
Justice Salii received her law degree from the University of Denver College of Law in 1993 after obtaining her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Hawaii, Hilo. On September 1, 2000, Justice Salii was sworn in as the first woman to serve on the Palau Supreme Court following her appointment by President Kuniwo Nakamura. Prior to this, she served as an Assistant Attorney General from 1993 to 1997, an Acting Attorney General between 1997 and 1998, and then in private practice from 1998 to 2000. Justice Salii and her husband, Wilbur O. Williams, are blessed with two daughters.
