July 2001 

by Jan Michels
WSBA Executive Director
janm@wsba.org

At any one time in the "WSBA world" there are many initiatives and new approaches to old issues being discussed. In my experience these new ideas percolate a few months before surfacing in any formal way in committees, town meetings or other forums. It is a common organizational mech-anism for thoughts and ideas to be sounded out informally, discussed casually, and distributed for response and comment well before they appear on any agenda. What's unusual about the WSBA is that we're so big! Ideas are percolating all the time, all over the place. Sometimes ideas coalesce in committees, local or specialty bar associations, or simply gain momentum by word of mouth. Since the WSBA staff are like a file server for noticing and routing all kinds of information around the Bar and among the multiple "hubs," I note here some of the ideas I think of as "percolating." The Board of Governors has not taken positions or acted on any of these issues, and this list is neither exhaustive nor prioritized in any way.

After our success with tri-state CLE accreditation and reciprocity planning, Washington, Oregon and Idaho (perhaps to be joined by Utah) are starting to look for other ways in which tri-state or broader common planning can make the practice of law easier and less complicated for our members. Could we ever reconcile our RPCs? Would parallel pro hac vice rules help? Could admittees take the bar exam where it was closest to them geographically? Could we take a common approach to developing issues?

Another thought percolating is the possibility of including a link to a member's or firm's Web site on the member directory of the WSBA Web site (http://pro.wsba.org). The WSBA is building a business plan and cost estimates to extend the Web-link concept to include the construction and maintenance of member Web sites.

Recent developments have set this idea re-percolating. Lay members on the Disciplinary Board, Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection, and Character and Fitness Committee have proven themselves very valuable, both for their insight and for the appearance of objectivity. The Access to Justice Board has added lay members. If and when the WSBA becomes the regulator of nonlawyer practice, might this idea make sense?

Internet practice is here — not only using the Internet to supplement current law practice, such as legal research or advertising and referrals, but for actual Internet practice where client contact, substantive advice-giving, and form preparation occur over the Net. Practicing law via the Internet is qualitatively different. Members want help sorting it out, thinking it through, and taking advantage of a way of life that more and more clients are coming to expect, and even demand. In this topic area, it's more the shock and cry for guidance that's percolating, and it's picking up steam!

The lease will terminate at our current downtown office space in 2006, creating both an opportunity and a challenge in considering a new location. A committee chaired by Governor Brooke Taylor to examine proximity needs, possibilities and costs welcomes comments and observations.

Presently, there doesn't appear to be critical mass for action on these issues. People are talking about them, and opinions are being expressed and vetted. Please share your opinions through local bar associations, special study groups, committees and sections. Let your district governor in on your thoughts. In the completion of my analogy, "We all drink the brew we create with the percolating process." Send us your input!

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