Court Rules and Procedures Committee

The Court Rules and Procedures Committee studies and develops suggested amendments to designated sets of court rules on a regular cycle of review. It also responds to requests for comment from the Supreme Court on proposals developed by others. The Committee performs the rules-study function outlined in General Rule 9 and reports its recommendations to the Board of Governors.

From time to time, the Committee publicizes suggested rule changes for public comment before finalizing its recommendations. Members of the bar, bench, and public are encouraged to review these proposals and send comments to the Committee.

Meetings are held in the WSBA Conference Center in Seattle. Meeting agendas are ordinarily circulated about a week before the meeting.

Please send any suggestions for rule changes in compliance with General Rule 9 to the Supreme Court of Washington, Temple of Justice, P.O. Box 40929, Olympia, WA 98504-0929, or e-mail Lisa Bausch at Lisa.Bausch@courts.wa.gov (with a copy to Court Rules and Procedures Committee, Washington State Bar Association, 2101 Fourth Ave., Ste. 400, Seattle WA 98121, or e-mail here).

 Agendas & Meeting Materials

• October 22, 2007 Agenda & Meeting Materials
  
• November 19, 2007 Agenda & Meeting Materials; Supplemental Meeting Materials
  
• January 14, 2008 Agenda and Meeting Materials
  
• February 25, 2008 Agenda and Meeting Materials; Supplemental Meeting Materials
  

• April 14, 2008 Agenda & Meeting Materials

Meeting Minutes

Note: To be as timely as possible, the most recent minutes are usually posted on the website after review by the Committee Chairperson, but without being formally approved by the full Committee. The minutes may also reflect recommended actions that have not yet been approved by the Board of Governors or submitted to the Supreme Court of Washington.  Please send any comments on matters covered by the minutes to WSBACourtRules@wsba.org.

• June 18, 2007 Meeting Minutes
  
• October 22, 2007 Meeting Minutes
  
• November 19, 2007 Meeting Minutes; November Meeting Materials Attachment
  
• January 14, 2008 Meeting Minutes
  
• [draft] February 2008 Meeting Minutes

Committee News and Activities

In 2006-2007, the Committee reviewed the Rules of Evidence (ER) and the Infraction Rules for Courts of Limited Jurisdiction (IRLJ).  The Committee will present its recommendations to the WSBA Board of Governors at the Board's meeting in Quincy, Washington on July 27, 2007. For an overview of the Committee's activities in 2006-2007, click here.

When it reconvenes in October 2007, the WSBA Court Rules and Procedures Committee is scheduled to review the Superior Court Civil Rules (CR), the Mandatory Arbitration Rules (MAR), and the Civil Rules for Courts of Limited Jurisdiction (CRLJ).The Committee invites interested persons to submit suggestions for adoption, amendment, or repeal of any of these rules.  Please direct suggestions to Elizabeth Turner at Elizabetht@wsba.org or to WSBACourtRules@wsba.org.

Recently Adopted Rule Changes and Proposed Rules

The following orders relate to rules suggested by the Court Rules and Procedures Committee and approved by the WSBA Board of Governors.  For information about all proposed and recently adopted rules, see the Washington Court Rules page.

On June 7, 2007, the Supreme Court adopted amendments to the following rules, effective September 1, 2007:

• CR 10, 45, 45 Form [new], 53.4, 54, 78, and CRLJ 10
• GR 14.1 [new rule] and GR 33 [new rule]
• CrR 4.4, 4.7, 7.8, and CrRLJ 4.4
• RAP 9.5, 10.4, and RALJ 7.3

On July 10, 2006, the Supreme Court adopted amendments to the following rules, effective September 1, 2006:

• RAP 1.1, 2.2, 5.2, 8.1, 9.6, 10.2, 10.3, 10.4, 10.5, 11.4, 12.3, 13.4, 13.5A [new], 13.7, 16.7, 16.9, 16.14, 16.16, 16.18, 17.4, 17.5, 18.1, 18.5, 18.6, 18.7, 18.13, 18.15, Form 4, Form 6, Form 7, Form 12, Form 14, Form 17, and Form 24 [new rule]
• RALJ 4.1
• GR 3.1 (Service and Filing by an Inmate Confined in an Institution)[new rule]
• CR 43 and 66, and CRLJ 43
• amendments to the Rules of Evidence (ER) [deletion of all comments to ERs]

Other rule changes and suggested amendments of interest:

On July 11, 2007, the Supreme Court adopted an amendment to CrR 4.2(g), effective on publication.

On June 7, 2007, the Supreme Court ordered amendments to GR 26 (Mandatory Continuing Judicial Education) published for public comment, with a comment period expiring 60 days from publication.  Also on June 7, 2007, the Supreme Court adopted amendments to GR 12 (Washington State Bar Association: Purposes), effective on September 1, 2007.

On April 5, 2007, the Supreme Court ordered the following rules and amendments published for public comment, with a comment period expiring on June 22, 2007:

• CrRLJ 4.1
• ER 1101
• GR 30

On November 2, 2006, the Supreme Court adopted new APR 26, a rule requiring each WSBA member to certify annually whether he or she is currently covered by professional liability insurance.  The rule will become effective on July 1, 2007.  More information is available on the Washington Courts website.

On July 10, 2006, the Supreme Court adopted comprehensive revisions to the Rules of Professional Conduct (RPC), together with conforming amendments to the APR, GR, and ELC. These changes became effective on September 1, 2006. More information about the Ethics 2003 amendments is available at the WSBA Ethics 2003 webpage.  Effective April 24, 2007, the Supreme Court amended RPC 1.8(e).  For a copy of the amended rule, please see the Washington State Courts website at: Rule 1.8: Conflict of Interest: Current Clients: Specific Rules. Effective September 1, 2007, the Supreme Court amended RPC 1.15A(e). For a copy of the amended rule, please see the Washington State Courts website at: Proposed Amendment to Rule 1.15A(e).

On October 6, 2004, the Supreme Court adopted a new rule, GR 31, governing access to court records.  The rule became effective on October 26, 2004.  Amendments to GR 31 were adopted by order dated December 1, 2005, effective January 3, 2006. For more information about this rule, see the press release: Washington Supreme Court Adopts Rule Governing Public Access to Court Records.

On March 9, 2006, the Supreme Court adopted changes to the court rules relating to destruction and sealing of court records (GR 15) and access to family court records (GR 22), effective July 1, 2006. For more information about these changes, see the press release: Washington Supreme Court Adopts Changes to Court Record Rules.

For more information about all proposed and recently adopted rules, see the Washington Court Rules page.