Robert Durham’s career in the judiciary began when he was appointed to the Oregon Court of Appeals by the governor on November 19, 1991. Subsequently he was elected to a full term in 1992, but resigned from the court before the end of his term upon his appointment to the state supreme court. Also in 1992, he served as a faculty at the National Judicial College. From 1992 to 1994 and again from 1996 through 2005 Durham was a member on the Oregon Council on Court Procedures.