Meet Judge Mulrooney
Judge Timothy Mulrooney has been a judge for 8 years. He was appointed to the Ramsey County Bench in 2016 by Governor Mark Dayton, and he was elected by the voters of Ramsey County in 2018.
Judge Mulrooney has lived virtually all of his life in St. Paul. After attending St. Paul’s public and Catholic schools, he graduated from the University of Notre Dame and got his law degree from the University of Minnesota. Following graduation from law school, Judge Mulrooney clerked for Hennepin County Judge Richard Solum, after which he worked as a prosecutor for five years. He was later a shareholder in the Minneapolis law firm of Henson & Efron where he worked primarily in family law and handled pro bono criminal appeals for the State Public Defender’s Office. He joined the Hennepin County Bench as a Family Court Referee in 2008, where he remained until Governor Dayton appointed him to the Ramsey County Bench as a judge in 2016.
In the last several years, Judge Mulrooney’s judicial work has focused on cases involving individuals struggling with severe mental illness and chemical dependency. Judge Mulrooney co-chairs the Second Judicial District’s Mental Health Gap Workgroup, which strives to bridge the gap between the criminal and mental health systems to provide a more just and effective response to behavior caused by mental illness.
Judge Mulrooney is currently assigned to the Behavioral Health Unit where he presides over treatment courts, civil commitments (cases involving treatment for mentally ill individuals) and criminal competency court (“Rule 20” cases, where determinations are made regarding a person’s competency to stand trial and the supervision of those who are not competent). Judge Mulrooney has also served in the juvenile, criminal and civil divisions, and served eight years in family court in Hennepin County as a referee.
Judge Mulrooney values the idea that every person in court is entitled to an opportunity to be heard and a fair decision based on the law. With 16 years of judicial experience, including the last 8 years as a Ramsey County judge, Judge Mulrooney has demonstrated fairness, impartiality and reasoned decision-making. Judge Mulrooney is proud to serve the people of Ramsey County.
Judge Mulrooney lives in St. Paul with his wife and children.