Virginia Linder was born in Colorado, the daughter of two teachers, but grew up mostly in Carmichael, California.
[2] She began her career as an Assistant Attorney General in the Appellate Division of the Oregon Department of Justice, starting in 1980.
[3] In 1986, at the age of 33, she was appointed Oregon Solicitor General, being the first woman to hold that position and serving in that office for longer than anyone else in state history.
[5] Because no candidate won a majority of the votes, Linder and Roberts advanced to the November runoff.
[3] Linder was the first woman elected to the Oregon Supreme Court; all previous female justices had been appointed to fill vacancies.