City Magistrate John Lamb

The City Council appointed John Lamb as the Presiding Magistrate for the Tolleson City Court in 2018. Prior to his appointment Judge Lamb served as a judge for twenty years in state courts--the Holbrook City and Justice Courts and the highest trial court, the State of Arizona Superior Court—and then for four years as a tribal court judge for the Yavapai-Apache Nation and the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.

In his 24 years on the bench, Judge Lamb has been selected to serve on the faculty of the Arizona Judicial College where he has taught judicial classes to Arizona judges on, among other topics, how to run an efficient court. He has also been selected to write and re-write legal instruction materials for other judges. Judge Lamb also served on the Editorial Advisory Board for Wendell—the Arizona Judicial Reference Site--and on the Arizona Judicial Law Review for judges.

During his time on the bench, the Arizona Supreme Court Chief Justice appointed Judge Lamb, as one of two superior court judges in the state, to sit on her newly formed Court Leadership Institute of Arizona. The Arizona State Senate President appointed Judge Lamb as a member of the Joint Study Committee on the State Funding of the Court System. The Arizona State Bar President appointed Judge Lamb to the Criminal Jury Instruction Committee where he helped write the jury instructions used in every criminal trial in the state. The Arizona Supreme Court has on numerous occasions appointed Judge Lamb to be a Mentor for other judges.

During his years in Holbrook, Judge Lamb twice served as President of his Elks Lodge and treasurer for his Rotary Club. He also started a Mental Health Court and a Teen Court program, coached youth basketball, and spoke the keynote address at numerous events.

As the Presiding Judge for the Court, Judge Lamb is in charge of both the judicial and administrative side of the Court. He is trained in both sides: receiving his J.D. degree from Northwestern University School of Law and his Master’s in Public Administration from the L.B.J. School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. Judge Lamb received his B.A. from Stanford University.

In his own words: It will be my distinct honor to serve such a strong and closely knit community as Tolleson. Everyone has been very welcoming and kind to me and I am grateful for that reception. This City’s mission is “to provide an inclusive, healthy, safe, affordable place to live, work, play and raise a family”. We, at the Court, intend to help in making that mission a reality. Please let one of us here know if there are ways that we can improve the Court to serve you and the community better. We are happy to hear complaints or comments. We want this Court to be as elite and as well respected as this City is.