September 2003
FYI: For Your Information
Washington Defense Trial Lawyers Seeks Award Nominations
The Washington Defense Trial Lawyers (WDTL) is accepting nominations for Outstanding Defense Trial Lawyer, Outstanding Litigation Associate Award, and Outstanding Plaintiffs' Trial Lawyer. All three awards recognize individuals who uphold the highest professional and ethical standards for Washington attorneys. Nominees for the Outstanding Defense Trial Lawyer and Outstanding Litigation Associate must be members of the WDTL. Nominees for the Outstanding Plaintiffs' Trial Lawyer do not have to be members of the WDTL. The awards will be presented at the WDTL Judges Reception and Awards Ceremony on October 23. Letters of nomination should include the name and contact information for the individual you are nominating, the reason you are nominating the individual, and any other relevant information. Nominations must be received by September 26, 2003, and should be sent to Andrea Ballard, Executive Director, WDTL, 601 Union St., Ste. 4100, Seattle WA 98103; or andrea@wdtl.org. For more information, visit www.wdtl.org.
Board of Governors Adopts Interim Formal Ethics Opinion
At its July 25-26 board meeting, the WSBA Board of Governors adopted an interim formal ethics opinion relating to the effect of the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Sarbanes-Oxley regulations on Washington attorneys' obligations under the Rules of Professional Conduct (RPCs). Earlier this year, the SEC issued final rules under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act governing the conduct of attorneys appearing and practicing before the SEC. Effective August 2003, the SEC rules permit lawyers in certain circumstances to reveal information that could constitute client confidences or secrets under the RPCs. The formal opinion concludes that a Washington lawyer's RPC obligations have not been affected by the SEC rules; that even if the SEC rules authorize revelation, a Washington lawyer should not reveal confidences and secrets unless authorized to do so by the RPC; and that a Washington lawyer cannot raise the "good faith" provisions of the SEC rules as a defense to an RPC violation if the lawyer took action contrary to the formal opinion.
The opinion was proposed jointly by the WSBA Special Committee for the Evaluation of the Rules of Professional Conduct (Ethics 2003 Committee) and the WSBA RPC Committee. It was approved and adopted by an 11-0-1 vote of the Board of Governors. The complete text of the opinion is available on the WSBA website at www.wsba.org/formalopinion.doc.
New and Improved! Extended CLE Online Calendar
You can now see upcoming seminar listings months in advance with our extended CLE online calendar, located at www.wsba.org/cle/seminars/default1.htm. In response to many requests for advance information on future CLE programs, this electronic online seminar calendar is provided as a supplement to printed brochures.
MCLE Credits for Group 3 Due at Year End
Active WSBA members in MCLE Reporting Group 3 will be required to report compliance with MCLE credit requirements for 2001-2003 at the end of this year. Members in Group 3 include those who were admitted to the WSBA in 1984 through 1990, or in 1993, 1996, or 1999. Members admitted in 2002 are also in Group 3 but will not be due to report until 2006.
Group 3 members will need to complete the following by December 31, 2003 to meet the MCLE credit requirements for 2001-2003:
• At least 30 live credits
• At least six ethics credits
• At least 45 credits total
If Group 3 members do not meet the credit requirements by December 31, 2003, an automatic extension is granted until May 1, 2004; however, a late fee will be imposed. If this is the first period in which a member is late, the late fee is $150. The late fee increases by $300 for each consecutive reporting period that the member is late in meeting MCLE requirements.
Members may use the online MCLE system at http://pro.wsba.org to:
• Review courses taken and credits earned.
• Apply for course approval.
• Apply for writing credit or prep-time credit.
• Search for approved courses being presented in the future.
To use the MCLE system, go to http://pro.wsba.org, click the "Member" tab, then select "Member Login." The online instructions lead you through setting up a confidential password and beginning to use the system. If you have questions, contact the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA, or questions@wsba.org.
Speaking of MCLE Reporting Time
July's Member-Appreciation Summer Sale was a tremendous success, with great deals on CLE deskbooks, coursebooks, and tapes. If you are still in need of more MCLE credits by the end of the year, don't forget December's Annual WSBA-CLE Bookstore. Stop in and browse in person, or conveniently shop online. Watch the WSBA home page (www.wsba.org) and your mailbox in the coming weeks for details.
Keep in Touch via E-mail
The WSBA uses e-mail to communicate with members quickly, efficiently, and inexpensively, and increasingly it is becoming the preferred method of communication among committees and sections. If you haven't already, please consider providing us your e-mail address. Contact the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA, 206-443-WSBA, or questions@wsba.org. Representatives are available Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
2003 WSBA Annual Awards Recipients
Congratulations to this year's Washington State Bar Association annual awards recipients. With the exception of the Pro Bono Award and the Outstanding Judge Award, the awards will be presented at the Annual Awards dinner in Seattle on September 11, 2003. Recipients are:
• Pro Bono Award: The Spokane County Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Program and the Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association Volunteer Legal Services Program. (This award was presented June 7 at the ATJ Conference.)
• Award of Merit: David Burman, Nicholas Gellert, and Katie O'Sullivan of Perkins Coie LLP; and Maureen Hart of the Attorney General's office, for their work on the U.S. Supreme Court IOLTA case.
• Board of Governors Award for Professionalism: The Honorable Harry J. McCarthy.
• Angelo Petruss Award for Lawyers in Public Service: Rochelle Kleinberg-Goffe.
• Outstanding Judge Award: The Honorable Stephen J. Dwyer. (This award will be presented at the 46th Washington Judicial Conference in Spokane on September 22.)
• Excellence in Diversity Award: Perkins Coie LLP and the Glass Ceiling Task Force.
Breean Beggs and Laurie Powers Receive Local Hero Awards
Congratulations to Bellingham attorneys Breean Beggs and Laurie Powers, husband and wife, who on July 25 were both presented WSBA Local Hero Awards by WSBA President Dick Manning at the Board of Governors meeting. The Local Hero Award is presented to lawyers who have made noteworthy contributions to their communities.
Mr. Beggs, who received his J.D. in 1991 from the University of Washington School of Law, is a partner at Brett & Daugert and an adjunct professor at Fairhaven College. He has volunteered tremendous amounts of time to such projects as Legal Assistance by Whatcom (LAW) Advocates, which provides legal assistance and access to justice for low-income Whatcom County residents; the Street Law Program, a LAW Advocates program he started in 1994 in which local attorneys provide free legal advice every Saturday afternoon during the summer at a downtown street corner; and the Whatcom Civil Rights Project, which he co-founded in 2001 to provide legal assistance and advocacy to victims of discrimination and civil-rights abuse in Whatcom County. In addition, Mr. Beggs volunteers for Law Day each year. As a volunteer, he was instrumental in obtaining $4 million from criminal fines in the Olympic Pipeline case to fund a nonprofit pipeline-safety and educational trust.
He is co-founder of and a volunteer for Excellence Northwest, a nonprofit group focusing on personal and professional development; a frequent speaker at local high schools and colleges about constitutional rights; a mentor to pre-law students and new attorneys; a youth soccer coach; and a volunteer in his church nursery.
Ms. Powers, who received her J.D. in 1991 from the University of Washington School of Law, is the interim executive director of LAW Advocates. Appointed by the Whatcom County executive as a citizen member of Whatcom County's Law & Justice Council, she serves on the Executive Committee and the Juvenile Justice Committee.
In addition, Ms. Powers is a former president of the board of directors of Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault Services (formerly Whatcom Crisis Services) and former chair of the Family Law Committee, which pioneered a family law "re-envisioning" process for Whatcom County that resulted in new local rules requiring mediation in family law cases, adoption of residential guidelines for parenting plans, and increased access to legal services for domestic-violence victims. She is a citizen volunteer for both the Domestic Violence Task Force Civil Court Work Group and the Work Group on Coordinated Judicial Response to Domestic Violence. A former part-time staff attorney and volunteer attorney for Project SAFER (Stop Abuse and Fear by Exercising Rights, a LAW Advocates program that provides direct representation for domestic-violence victims), Ms. Powers currently serves on the board of trustees of First Congregational Church and is a volunteer food server at Maple Alley Inn and the Community Meals program.
Congratulations to New Eighth District Governor-elect Randy Gordon
At its July 25 board meeting, the WSBA Board of Governors elected Bellevue attorney Randolph I. (Randy) Gordon as governor-elect for the 8th District, to serve a two-year term (vacancy) created by the board's election of Ronald Ward as president-elect effective September 11, 2003. Mr. Gordon's term runs from October 2003 to September 2005.
Address Update Reminder
Now is the ideal time to check that the WSBA has your correct contact information in its database for the 2004 license-fee renewal packets scheduled to be mailed in early December. You can check your listing by going to the online lawyer directory at http://pro.wsba.org. If any of your contact information (name, address, phone number, or e-mail address) has changed, please update the information by contacting the WSBA Service Center (e-mail questions@wsba.org; fax 206-727-8319; or call 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA).
Supreme Court Amends Pro Bono Publico Rule 6.1
On July 15, the Washington State Supreme Court amended RPC 6.1. The amendment is designed to encourage lawyers to perform pro bono services. It sets a 30-hour-per-year aspirational goal and provides for WSBA awards to those who perform and voluntarily report 50 or more pro bono service hours in any given year. The amended rule is shown below:
Rule 6.1 Pro Bono Publico Service. Every lawyer has a professional responsibility to assist in the provision of legal services to those unable to pay. A lawyer should aspire to render at least thirty (30) hours of pro bono publico service per year. In fulfilling this responsibility the lawyer should:
(a) provide legal services without fee or expectation of fee to: (1) persons of limited means or (2) charitable, religious, civil, community, governmental and educational organizations in matters which are designed primarily to address the needs of persons of limited means; and
(b) provide pro bono publico service through: (1) delivery of legal services at no fee or substantially reduced fee to individuals, groups or organizations seeking to secure or protect civil rights, civil liberties or public rights, or charitable, religious, civil, community, governmental and educational organizations in furtherance of their organizational purposes, where the payment of standard legal fees would significantly deplete the organization's economic resources or would otherwise be inappropriate, (2) delivery of legal services at a substantially reduced fee to persons of limited means, or, (3) participation in activities for improving the law, the legal system or the legal profession.
Pro bono publico service may be reported on the annual fee statement furnished to the WSBA. Lawyers rendering a minimum of fifty (50) hours of pro bono publico service shall receive a recognition award for such service from the WSBA.
New Third-Party Liability Website
The Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) has just created a website that provides information on the process used by DSHS to recover the costs of Medicaid payments expended on behalf of a recipient who has been injured by the actions of a third party. 42 U.S.C. 1396(a)(25) and RCW 43.20B.060 require DSHS to recover those Medicaid moneys from any settlement or judgment received by the medical assistance recipient. This website provides statutory references and a copy of the worksheet for determining how much of the settlement or judgment is owed to DSHS. It also includes frequently asked questions regarding the process used by DSHS to determine the amount owed to the state of Washington. The website is found at http://fortress.wa.gov/dshs/maa/ltpr.
Notice of Public Meeting: Legal Foundation of Washington
September 12, 2003
The trustees of the Legal Foundation of Washington will meet on September 12, 2003, at the foundation's office, 500 Union St., Ste. 545, Seattle. From 9-9:30 a.m., the public may appear in order to comment on the foundation's activities. This opportunity is made pursuant to Article I, Section 1.7, of the Legal Foundation of Washington bylaws.
WSBA 50-Year Member Tribute Luncheon
This year, the WSBA will be honoring its 50-year members at a luncheon on Thursday, September 25, in the Fifth Avenue Room of the Westin Hotel, 1900 Fifth Ave., Seattle. Registration and reception begin at 11 a.m. (no-host bar), and the luncheon and program begin at noon. The cost of the luncheon is $45 per person. All members of the legal community are invited to attend. The registration form can be found on page 55.
Ethics 2003 Committee Meetings
The WSBA Committee for the Evaluation of the Rules of Professional Conduct (Ethics 2003 Committee) was convened to review the revised ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct; undertake a comprehensive study and evaluation of the ABA "Ethics 2000" revisions; consider the suitability of adopting the ABA revisions and commentary in Washington; and consider other appropriate changes to Washington's Rules of Professional Conduct. Ethics 2003 Committee meetings are open to the public, and interested WSBA members are encouraged to attend and/or provide input about the committee's work. Information about the committee is on the WSBA website at www.wsba.org/lawyers/groups/ethics2003. Please direct questions or comments to Committee Reporter Douglas Ende at 206-733-5917 or ethics2003 committee@wsba.org.
Upcoming Ethics 2003 Committee meetings:
October 8—WSBA office
November 12—WSBA office
Mentors Needed for Lawyer-to-Lawyer Program
The WSBA Lawyer-to-Lawyer Program needs experienced attorneys to serve as informal mentors, especially in King County. Interested members may contact Pete Roberts or Allison Durazzi in the Law Office Management Assistance Program. Pete Roberts can be reached at 206-727-8237 or peter@wsba.org; Allison Durazzi can be reached at 206-733-5914 or allisond@wsba.org. Program guidelines and sign-up forms are online at www.wsba.org/lawyers/services/lawyertolawyer.htm.
Bankruptcy Case Law Digest for Washington State—Third Edition
The third edition of the Bankruptcy Case Law Digest for Washington State is a two-volume set with a searchable CD, and contains bankruptcy cases dating from 1996 through 2002, with a linked topical index, case list, code, and rules. Bankruptcy cases included are from the U.S. Supreme Court, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, the 9th Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel, the 9th Circuit District Courts, and Washington bankruptcy courts.
Cost for both volumes and the searchable CD is $90. Members of the WSBA Creditor-Debtor Section and the Idaho Commercial Law and Bankruptcy Section receive a $15 discount. For ordering information, go to www.wsba.org/lawyers/groups/creditordebtor/bankruptcy_digest.htm.
Washington Legal Ethics Deskbook (2003) Available Fall 2003
Edited by Gail McMonagle, Perkins Coie professional standards counsel, and written by members of the WSBA Rules of Professional Conduct Committee, including the former WSBA chief disciplinary counsel, the Washington Legal Ethics Deskbook (2003) provides practical advice on all aspects of client representation, from formation of the attorney-client relationship to withdrawal from employment. The deskbook includes comprehensive coverage of advertising and solicitation (including Internet issues), attorney fees and fee agreements (with sample agreements), multistate practice and collection issues, special ethical concerns in mediation and negotiation, and attorney malpractice and disciplinary procedures, including the new Rules for the Enforcement of Lawyer Conduct (ELCs). The price of the deskbook is $150, plus shipping and handling, and tax. For more information, call the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA, or e-mail orders@wsba.org.
David Burman to Receive Charles A. Goldmark Distinguished Service Award
The Legal Foundation of Washington will present the 2004 Charles A. Goldmark Distinguished Service Award to David J. Burman at the 18th Annual Goldmark Award Luncheon, to be held Friday, February 20, 2004, at the Red Lion Hotel in Seattle from noon to 1:30 p.m. The luncheon is open to the public.
Mr. Burman, a partner with Perkins Coie, will receive the award in recognition of his pro bono representation before the U.S. Supreme Court in Brown v. Legal Foundation of Washington. The Court upheld the constitutionality of Washington's IOLTA program. Nationally, IOLTA programs provide over one-third of civil legal-aid funding to the poor.
The Goldmark Award honors the memory of Charles A. Goldmark, Seattle attorney, community leader, and ardent supporter of access to justice, who was serving as the Legal Foundation's president at the time of his death in 1986. For more information about the Legal Foundation of Washington, the Goldmark Award, or the IOLTA program, visit www.legalfoundation.org.
Usury Rate
The average coupon equivalent yield from the first auction of 26-week treasury bills in August 2003 was 1.047 percent. The maximum allowable interest rate for September is therefore 12 percent. Compilations of the average coupon equivalent yields from past auctions of 26-week treasury bills and past maximum interest rates for June 1988-June 1999 appear on page 53 of the June 1999 Bar News. Information from January 1987 to date is on the WSBA website at www.wsba.org/media/publications/barnews/usury.htm.
Upcoming Board of Governors Meetings
September 11-12—Seattle
October 17-18—Portland
December 5-6—Leavenworth
With the exception of a one-hour executive session the morning of the first day, Board of Governors meetings are open, and all WSBA members are welcome to attend. RSVPs are appreciated but not required. Please contact Donna Sato at 206-727-8244 or donnas@wsba.org. The complete Board of Governors meeting schedule is available on the WSBA website at www.wsba.org/info/bog/schedule.htm.
Website Links from Lawyer Directory
A link to your website can be added to your directory listing, so that current and potential clients can find out more about you and your practice at the click of a button.
The fee is $75 annually ($50 for the first year if you sign up July 1 or later). If your firm has seven or more lawyers, you'll save through our special pricing structure. Special pricing is also available for those who work for nonprofit or government agencies. For more information and sign-up instructions, see www.wsba.org/lawyers/addlink.htm.
Consumer-Information Pamphlets Available
Provide a valuable service to your clients by offering them consumer-information pamphlets! Published by the WSBA as a public service, these pamphlets educate consumers about their legal rights and responsibilities, answer frequently asked questions, and explain basic aspects of Washington law. The information, of course, is general, and not intended as legal advice or as a substitute for a lawyer's services.
For a complete list of pamphlets and pricing information, contact the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA, or go to www.wsba.org/consumer-information.
Note: A special discounted rate is available for qualified nonprofit organizations—contact the WSBA Service Center for details.
Learn More about Case-Management Software
The WSBA Law Office Management Assistance Program (LOMAP) office maintains a computer for members to review software tools designed to maximize office efficiency. LOMAP staff are available to provide materials, answer questions, and recommend options. To make an appointment, contact Pete Roberts at 206-727-8237 or peter@wsba.org.
Back to table of contents >>
