September 2001

FYI: For Your Information

The WSBA Board of Governors takes great pleasure in announcing the recipients of the 2001 awards. The recipients will be honored at the Awards Dinner, Thursday, September 13, 2001 at the W Seattle Hotel. (To make your reservation, please complete and return the form on page 42 no later than September 4.)

Award of Merit – John McKay; Rick Nagel

President's Award – to be announced at Awards Dinner

Board of Governors' Award for Professionalism – Francois X. Forgette

Angelo Petruss Award for Lawyers in Public Service – Narda D. Pierce

Outstanding Judge Award – The Hon. Daniel J. Berschauer

Pro Bono Award – TeamChild

Courageous Award – Steven J. Tucker

Affirmative Action Award – Rafael A. Gonzales; Washington Young Lawyers Division

Excellence in Legal Journalism Award – Robert C. Pittman

Special Lifetime Service Award – Joseph H. Gordon Sr.

The Aljoya Conference Center in Seattle will host a WSBA symposium September 20-21 to study the use of the Association of Legal Adminstrators' business-skills curriculum for lawyers. For more information, contact Peter Roberts at peter@wsba.org or 206-727-8237.

Did you know that easy-to-understand pamphlets on a wide variety of legal topics are available from the WSBA? For a very low cost, you can provide your clients with helpful information. Pamphlets cover a wide range of topics:

Each topic is sold separately. Pamphlets are $9 for 25, $15 for 50, $20 for 75, and $25 for 100. Pricing for larger quantities is available on request.

Additionally, copies of The Law Book, a special supplement to the King County Journal Newspapers, are available. The 12-page tabloid includes articles by WSBA members on a wide range of topics. The cost is $20 for 100 copies.

To place your order or for more information, please contact the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA. Sales tax is applicable to all in-state orders.

The Legal Foundation of Washington is now accepting nominations for the 2002 Goldmark Award. The award will be presented as part of the 16th Annual Goldmark Award Luncheon, Thursday, February 21, 2002.

The Distinguished Service Award is given annually to an exceptional individual or organization whose vision, leadership and creativity has provided meaningful access to the civil justice system in Washington.

Nomination forms may be obtained by calling the Legal Foundation of Washington at 206-624-2536, ext. 10; by e-mailing dtheories@legalfoundation.org; or by visiting http://www.legalfoundation.org/. Completed nomination forms, along with letters or documents to support the nomination, must be received by Friday, September 7, 2001.

The Board of Governors meeting schedule is as follows:

September 13-15 – WSBA office, Seattle

October 19-20 – Vancouver, WA

November 30-December 1 – Tacoma

With the exception of a one-hour executive session the morning of the first day, BOG meetings are open, and all WSBA members are welcome to attend. RSVPs are appreciated, but not required. Please contact Lori Lee at 206-727-8244 or loril@wsba.org.

The trustees of the Legal Foundation of Washington (LFW) will meet on September 13, 2001 at the LFW office in Seattle. The public may appear from 9:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. to comment on the foundation's activities. This opportunity is made pursuant to Article I, Section 1.7 of the bylaws of the Legal Foundation of Washington.

When it reconvenes later this fall, the Court Rules and Procedures Committee is scheduled to review the Criminal Rules for Superior Court (CrR) and for Courts of Limited Jurisdiction (CrRLJ). Please send any suggestions for rule changes to the Supreme Court of Washington, Temple of Justice, PO Box 40929, Olympia, WA 98504-0929; or e-mail Lisa Bausch at lisa.bausch@courts.wa.gov.

Attorneys, judges and other interested persons are invited to attend a meeting of the Washington chapter of the American Judicature Society on October 12, 2001 from 9:00 a.m. to noon at the WSBA office. The two-part program includes Judge Robert Alsdorf, author of the I-695 trial court decision, speaking on judicial independence. There will also be a panel discussion on judicial election vs. selection moderated by Denny Heck of TV Washington. Panelists include Washington Supreme Court Chief Justice Gerry Alexander; attorneys Nicholas Corning and John McKay; and Walsh Commission members Court of Appeals Judge William Baker and attorney Mary Wechsler. For more information, contact Gail Stone at 206-733-5925 or gails@wsba.org.

Washington's senior citizens are well-served by the WSBA Elder Law Section. Not only do many section members volunteer their time by providing pro bono legal counseling services, the section launched its first grant program this year. The grant program will award up to $10,000 annually to Washington nonprofit programs that provide legal services to seniors. Each award will vary from $1,000 to $5,000, based on the number of award recipients, type of program, and number of seniors who will benefit from the program.

During the past two years, the section has donated $10,000 each year to the Legal Aid for Washington (LAW) Fund. The grant program was developed in keeping with the section's practice of recognizing the importance of access to legal services for all seniors. For additional information, see the Elder Law Section's page on the WSBA Web site at www.wsba.org/lawyers/groups/elderlaw/.

WestCoast Hotels, the WSBA and Legal Aid for Washington (LAW) Fund have created a partnership to raise funds for low-income legal services. Through the end of 2001, WestCoast Hotels will make donations to LAW Fund, based on the number of nights that anyone associated with the WSBA stays at any of the 47 Washington WestCoast Hotels. By simply asking for the WSBA rate, guests will receive a reduced room rate, and LAW Fund will receive $5 for each night's stay. Contact WestCoast Hotels at 800-325-4000.

King County Superior Court is seeking volunteers to serve as Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs). Volunteers receive extensive training to represent children involved in custody and visitation disputes in family law cases. They conduct interviews, write reports, and testify in hearings or trials. For more information, contact Ed Greenleaf at 206-296-9320.

Civil antiharassment hearings for the Seattle case assignment area are now being heard Tuesdays at 1:15 p.m. in courtroom W-275 at the King County Courthouse. This applies to calendared hearings for full protection orders and hearings to modify or terminate existing orders. All notices and orders setting hearings on the civil antiharassment calendar filed on or after July 17, 2001 must reflect this change. Emergency temporary orders will continue to be heard in the Ex Parte Department in courtroom W-325. Antiharassment hearings at the Regional Justice Center are not affected by this change.

Northwest Justice Project (NJP) has been award three technology initiative grants totaling $674,000 by Legal Services Corporation. The $50,000 state Web site grant will help fund an online advocate resource center for lawyers representing low-income clients. A state technology grant of $374,000 will help expand the availability of NJP's Coordinated Legal Education, Advice and Referral (CLEAR) service. A $250,000 national grant will fund staff from probono.net and lawhelp.org to assist with Web site content and protocol. Included in these grants is $25,000 to support the access to justice Technology Bill of Rights project, being developed by the Washington State Access to Justice Board. For more information about the technology initiative grants awarded to NJP, contact Joan Kleinberg at 206-464-1519 or joank@nwjustice.org.

The lawyer directory on the WSBA Web site just got better! A link to your Web site can now be included in the WSBA online directory, so people can go directly from your directory listing to your Web site. This will be a significant benefit to you and those seeking information!

The regular fee for this service will be $75 annually ($50 if you sign up July 1 or later). But if you sign up before December 31, 2001, you'll pay the charter-member fee of just $50, which will cover your listing through December 31, 2002.

For more information and a sign-up form, see the WSBA Web site at www.wsba.org/lawyers/addlink.htm.

The WSBA Law Office Management Assistance Program (LOMAP) will hit the road October 8-19, 2001. Seminars will be conducted in Colfax, Kennewick, Olympia, Vancouver, Wenatchee and Yakima. The program focuses on using technology to improve law practices, remain competitive, and exceed client expectations. CLE credits are pending. For more information, contact Peter Roberts at 206-727-8237 or peter@wsba.org, or Julie Griffiths at 206-733-5914 or julieg@wsba.org. Registration information is available on the WSBA Web site at www.wsba.org/lawyers/services/lomap.htm.

Updated editions of the Motor Vehicle Accident Deskbook, the Washington Motor Vehicle Accident Insurance Deskbook, and the Washington Motor Vehicle Accident Litigation Deskbook are now available from WSBA-CLE. The three-volume series provides exhaustive coverage of all issues from the initial interview with a potential client to the final resolution of the claim. The deskbooks include analysis and practice tips from more than 50 leading Washington personal injury and defense lawyers, plus detailed sample pleadings, discovery and settlement documents, letters, forms and memoranda commonly used in automobile accident litigation.

• Washington Motor Vehicle Accident Deskbook (2nd ed. 2001), edited by David F. Ross; $195

• Washington Motor Vehicle Accident Litigation Deskbook (2nd ed. 2001), edited by John J. Soltys and Michael L. Schrenk; $195

• Washington Motor Vehicle Accident Insurance Deskbook (2nd ed. 2001), edited by Donald C. Harrison, Sidney R. Snyder Jr. and Ronald S. Dinning; $160

Purchasers who sign up for the automatic update service will receive a 10 percent discount on the price. A further discount applies to purchases of all three deskbooks. To order, please contact the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA; or visit the WSBA Web site at www.wsba.org/cle/.

Descendants of Takuji Yamashita have donated $65,000 to endow a University of Washington School of Law scholarship in international law and human rights. Twenty-three of Mr. Yamashita's descendents, mostly in Japan, endowed the scholarship, which will begin supporting law students next year.

Mr. Yamashita graduated from the law school in 1902 and became an early champion of Asian-American civil rights after the Washington Supreme Court refused to let him practice law because of his Japanese origin. He challenged that denial, but died in 1959 without being able to practice law. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court posthumously admitted Mr. Yamashita to the WSBA (see Bar News, March 2001, p. 22). Donations may be made to the Takuji Yamashita Memorial Scholarship, University of Washington School of Law, 1100 NE Campus Parkway, Seattle, WA 98195-6617.

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