Elizabeth is raising her family in Portland. She has served as vice-president of the ACCESS PTA and president of the ACCESS Foundation. Her whole life is family, and it is the perspective she brings to every decision on the bench.

Before law school, Elizabeth was a high school English teacher in the Mississippi Delta and New Orleans. She was also a Peace Corps Volunteer in Cameroon, focusing on AIDS education, women’s health, and empowerment. Those years taught her something the law never could: people do better when they are heard.

Elizabeth has coached kids in both soccer and cross country in her neighborhood, including as an assistant coach for a local youth soccer team. Showing up on the sidelines is the same practice she brings to the courtroom: patient, prepared, and present.

Elizabeth is a pro bono child’s attorney through the Multnomah County Circuit Court Children’s Representation Project, advocating for kids at the hardest moments of their lives. She is also a regular contributor to Trial Lawyer Magazine and serves on the board of The Commons Law Center.

Elizabeth currently sits as a judge pro tem in Washington County approximately twice a month, where she hears domestic violence and stalking cases. She is also a court-appointed arbitrator in Multnomah County. She brings direct courtroom experience to a seat focused on domestic relations and juvenile law.

Elizabeth began her legal career at the law offices of Ivan Karmel, where she practiced primarily family law. That firm became Karmel Savage, and Elizabeth later established her own practice, Elizabeth Savage Law. While her practice areas have evolved to include appeals and civil litigation, she continues to practice family law and manages two other attorneys, including a family law associate.

As a law student, Elizabeth served as judicial extern to Justice Rives Kistler and Justice Martha Walters of the Oregon Supreme Court. She also clerked at the Oregon Department of Justice, Financial Fraud and Consumer Affairs Division, working on cases ranging from consumer protection violations to class actions against major pharmaceutical companies.

• Pro bono child’s attorney, Multnomah County Circuit Court Children’s Representation Project
• Co-chair, Oregon Trial Lawyers Association Amicus Committee
• Regular contributor, Trial Lawyer Magazine
• Board of Directors, The Commons Law Center
• Member, Uniform Civil Jury Instructions Committee
• House of Delegates, Oregon State Bar
• Member, Multnomah Bar Association Ethics Committee
• Board member, Oregon Women Lawyers Foundation