Katherine Hansen was appointed Judge of the 36^th District Court by Governor Jennifer M. Granholm in April 2004. She was elected in November 2004 and reelected in 2010.

Judge Hansen is a graduate of Drake University School of Law.  As a full time law student, she served as the American Bar Association-Law Student Division's National Student Director for VITA, the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance project.

Judge Hansen came to the bench following four years as an Assistant Attorney General.  Prior to that, Judge Hansen was employed as a Member of the Michigan Employment Security Board of Review, where she decided unemployment insurance benefit and unemployment tax rate cases.  She began her legal career at the UAW International Union’s Unemployment Insurance Clinic. 

Throughout her legal career, Judge Hansen has served with many professional organizations. Judge Hansen is the President of the Wayne County District Judges Association and is the Michigan District Judges Association’s Treasurer.   She has been selected as a member of the District Court Academic Advisory Committee of the Michigan Judicial Institute which determines educational topics for statewide judicial training.  Judge Hansen serves the State Bar as a member of its Justice Initiatives Criminal Issues Committee.  Judge Hansen has been admitted to the United States Supreme Court Bar.

Judge Hansen serves the community as a member of the Board of Directors for Michigan Legal Services, of the Boards of Directors of The Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association, and of the International Institute of Metropolitan Detroit.  She is a Silver Life Member of the NAACP.

In addition to fulfilling her responsibilities as a judge in one of the busiest courts in the nation, Judge Hansen is a co-chair of the 36^th District Court’s annual Law Day and Constitution Day observances.  Each observance has included hosting free legal advice days (assisting hundreds of citizens of Metro Detroit), school visits, and courthouse tours.  Judge Hansen also serves on the 36th District Court's committee coordinating training for House Counsel Defense attorneys.  Judge Hansen spearheaded the court’s recycling program; in less than four years, the court’s efforts have resulted in recycling of more than 34 tons of scrap paper, saving the equivalent of more than 740 trees.

Judge Hansen presides over a rotating docket of Traffic and Ordinance, Criminal Misdemeanors, and Felony Preliminary Examinations.