Arthur H. Snowden II
May 1, 1940 -
Apr 25, 2026
Arthur H. Snowden II, a legendary figure in Alaska's judicial history, died on April 25, 2026, in Portland, Ore. He was 85. Born in Connecticut, Snowden came to Alaska in 1973, when he was hired as Administrative Director of the Alaska Court System, a position he held for nearly a quarter of a century.
In an interview conducted in 2006, Snowden described the Alaska Supreme Court as "desperate" when they offered him the job back in 1973. The court system had been through seven directors in the 14 years since statehood and was struggling to be recognized as an independent branch of government rather than another department within the executive branch.
Snowden proved to be an effective advocate for the court system in Juneau, eventually persuading legislators and the executive branch to regard the judiciary as a co-equal branch of government rather than a department and as a trustworthy steward of public funds. With legislative support, he hired administrative staff and took over the administrative functions previously performed for the courts by the executive branch.
He took pride in accomplishing one of the supreme court's highest priorities, which was strengthening the rural magistrate system. At the time, non-lawyer magistrates provided justice throughout rural Alaska, but often worked out of their homes without adequate preparation for the case types they were expected to handle. Again, with support from the legislature and the supreme court, Snowden was able to move magistrates "off their kitchen tables and into real offices." He hired lawyers to create forms, checklists and other magistrate training materials, and recruited trial judges to answer magistrate calls.
Later, at the supreme court's request, he successfully advocated for creation of the Court of Appeals to handle criminal appeals. He obtained funding for additional trial court judges, for new court buildings in Fairbanks, Anchorage, Palmer and Kenai, and received legislative approval to purchase the Anchorage Times Building so that the court's administrative offices and training facilities could be consolidated under one roof. During his 24 1/2 years as administrative director, the court system's budget was never cut. When asked to explain his extraordinary legislative support, Snowden attributed it to relationships, giving your word, complete honesty, complete transparency and whether they like you or not.
Snowden's influence extended well beyond Alaska. He became a member of the board of directors of the National Center for State Courts beginning in 1984, and was later elected to a leadership role in that organization. In 1991, he received the Warren E. Burger Award, which is given annually to an individual in recognition of substantial contributions to the improvement of court administration and the judicial system.
Even after his retirement in 1997, Snowden continued to serve Alaska's justice system. He co-chaired the Alaska Criminal Justice Assessment Commission on a volunteer basis almost immediately after stepping down, and the commission's final report credited him as playing a "crucial role" — noting that "without his ideas and skills, the Commission would not have accomplished the significant work represented in this final report."
In recognition of Snowden's decades of distinguished service, the Alaska Supreme Court named the Administrative Office Building in downtown Anchorage after him.
Snowden is survived by his wife, Cheryl Copeland Snowden; daughter, Kirsten Snowden and husband John Schroeder; son, Arthur Neilan Snowden and wife Caitlin; four grandchildren; sister, Barbara Snowden Van Dine; and several nieces and nephews.
