April 2002 

Changing Venues

Attorney General Christine O. Gregoire has been honored by the Washington State Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserves (ESGR) in appreciation of her support of national guardsmen and reservists. The Seven Seals Award is presented in recognition of individuals or agencies whose policies help citizen soldier employees meet both their military and career responsibilities.

Timothy J. Blake has been appointed to a three-year term on the advisory board of the Phoenix Public Library System.

Salvador A. Mungia has been elected president of the board of Legal Aid for Washington (LAW) Fund. Mr. Mungia is a partner in the Tacoma office of Gordon Thomas Honeywell Malanca Peterson and Daheim.

Karen P. Sluiter has been elected to a one-year term as chair of the Seattle-King County Advisory Council on Aging and Disability Services. She has served on the council since 1996.

Francois X. Forgette has been named Kennewick Man of the Year by the Tri-City Area Chamber of Commerce. He was honored for exceptional service to the community.

The Washington chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates has honored Chief Justice Gerry L. Alexander as Judge of the Year, Joel L. Cunningham as Trial Lawyer of the Year, and Daniel F. Sullivan received the chapter's Lifetime Achievement Award. The chapter's 2002 officers are Ronald B. Leighton, president; Cheryl Robbins Berg, president-elect; Thomas H. Fain, vice president; Reed P. Schifferman, treasurer; Elizabeth A. Leedom, secretary; Ron Perey, past-president; and Timothy D. Blue and James S. Rogers, national board representatives.

Thomas W. Hillier II has been reappointed federal public defender for the Western District of Washington. He was first appointed federal public defender in 1982, and has been reappointed every four years since.

Russell W. Hartman has been appointed to the Kitsap County Superior Court bench by Governor Gary Locke. Mr. Hartman replaces Judge William J. Kamps, who retired after 12 years on the bench.

Patrick D. Holmes and James D. Howsley (members of the Oregon State Bar), and Richard T. Howsley have joined the Vancouver office of Lane Powell Spears Lubersky LLP. All three focus on land use, real estate, environmental and natural resources law.

Preston Gates & Ellis LLP has named six new partners in its Seattle office. Hilary Buckley Domeika represents health care clients in general corporate and transactional matters. Sam Z. Haviland focuses on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, limited liability companies and partnerships, and financings. John R. Lange works with high-tech companies on transactions related to product development, cross-licensing, and online marketing and product distribution. David Lenci concentrates on business litigation, including antitrust, unfair competition, trademark and copyright infringement, franchise disputes, securities fraud, insurance coverage, environmental remediation, land-use permit denials, and employment discrimination. Norman S. Milks focuses on tax-qualified retirement plans, health and other welfare benefit plans, executive compensation plans, and stock-based compensation plans. Helen Bergman Moure practices general commercial litigation in federal and state courts.

Amy E. Weissman has been named of counsel in the Seattle office of Preston Gates & Ellis LLP. She works with the firm's technology and intellectual property department.

Richard D. Campbell has been elected a principal in the Spokane firm McCormick, Dunn & Black PS. His practice emphasizes construction-claim litigation.

Paul R. Willet has been elected a member in the Seattle firm Short Cressman & Burgess PLLC. He is chair of the firm's estate planning, probate and trust administration group.

Retired Superior Court Judge R. Joseph Wesley has joined Judicial Dispute Resolution as a panelist. He served on the superior court bench for 18 years, most recently in King County.

Paul C. Cullom Jr. has joined the Seattle firm Christensen O'Connor Johnson Kindness PLLC. He works with the firm's patent practice group. John D. Denkenberger has become a member of the firm. His practice focuses on intellectual property, including U.S. and international mechanical and electro-mechanical patents, technology transfer and trademarks.

James E. Britain has joined the Bellingham firm formerly known as Carpenter Hardesty. Mr. Britain focuses on construction litigation and represents a number of Washington affiliates of Canadian companies. The new firm name is Carpenter, Hardesty and Britain.

Julie A. Brooks has been named chief legal officer of GiftCertificates.com. Ms. Brooks has an extensive background in technology-driven companies.

Jeffrey A. Beaver has been elected shareholder in the Seattle firm Graham & Dunn. He concentrates on financial services, condemnation and commercial litigation.

Eric B. Zimbelman has become a shareholder in the Bellevue firm Romero Montague PS. He leads the firm's employment practice group, and focuses on litigation. Michael Wiggins has become an associate concentrating on complex commercial litigation.

Robynne Thaxton Parkinson has returned to the Seattle firm Groff & Murphy PLLC as of counsel. Her practice emphasizes labor and employment law, and construction-related contracts and disputes.

Mary D. Chaffin has been named regional trust manager for U.S. Bank's private client group. She previously served as senior corporate counsel for U.S. Bancorp.

Scott M. Edwards, Allison Kendrick, Bruce G. MacIntyre, Elizabeth L. McDougall-Tural, James Sanders, Donald E. Walther and Georges H.G. Yates have been promoted to partner in the Seattle office of Perkins Coie LLP. Mr. Edwards focuses on taxation and taxation litigation. Ms. Kendrick practices with the firm's products liability litigation group. Mr. MacIntyre concentrates on matters related to insolvency and bankruptcy, debtor/creditor issues, commercial litigation, transportation law and creditors' rights. Ms. McDougall-Tural has a general litigation and appellate practice in state and federal courts, and before administrative bodies. Mr. Sanders works with the firm's labor and employment law group. Mr. Walther's litigation practice emphasizes intellectual property enforcement, antitrust, franchise law, estate and fiduciary law, criminal law, personal injury law, and the False Claims and Consumer Protection acts. Mr. Yates serves as outside general counsel to publicly and privately held companies, focusing on international business transactions and joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance and real estate. Heidi B. Boone has been named of counsel in the firm's Seattle office. She focuses on real estate acquisitions and dispositions, leasing, real estate finance and commercial finance.

Alexis Boris died February 21 at age 57. He practiced law in Seattle for more than 20 years. Mr. Boris was a member of the Magnolia Community Club and the Queen Anne/Magnolia Community Council, and worked with the city of Seattle on neighborhood-improvement projects. Memorials may be made to King County Medic One (7064 S. 220th St., Bldg. 9, Kent, WA 98032).

U.S. District Court Judge William L. Dwyer died February 12 at age 72. Though he had taken senior status in 1999, he continued to work until late January this year. Judge Dwyer was known for ruling in the case to save the Northern Spotted Owl from extinction, and for forcing the American League to give Seattle a baseball franchise. Prior to his legal career, Judge Dwyer worked as a waiter, dishwasher, truck driver, sawmill hand, cab driver and newspaper copy boy.

Wylie Hemphill died February 2 at age 84. Mr. Hemphill began his legal career with the Seattle firm Preston Thorgrimson. He then served in WWII, rising to the rank of lieutenant commander. He resumed the practice of law following the war, but took over his family mining and oil businesses in 1949, after his father's death. Mr. Hemphill was active in the Monday Club, Rotary, the 101 Club, and the Last Man's Club. Memorials may be made to St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral (1245 10th Ave. E., Seattle, WA 98102).

John Huneke died December 11 at age 92. A lifelong resident of Spokane, he practiced with the firms Brown & Huneke, Huneke & Van Tyen, and Paine Hamblen Coffin Brooke & Miller. Mr. Huneke was a past-president of the WSBA, the Spokane County Bar Association, and the Western States Bar Conference. He served on the WSBA Board of Governors, and was a fellow of the American Bar Association.

Judge John Lawson died of a heart attack December 27 at age 73. He served as the Redmond city attorney for 20 years, and then served at Northeast District Court for 11 years. In 1991, Judge Lawson switched to pro-tem assignments, primarily at Aukeen District Court in Kent.

Lloyd Wiehl died February 6 at age 92. Mr. Wiehl was a prosecuting attorney in Yakima County for many years before serving on the Yakima County Superior Court bench. In the late 1990s, he was concerned that the history of the Hanford area where he grew up might be lost. He commissioned Yakima artist Don Crook to paint a series of pictures of Hanford between 1811 and the early 20th century. Mr. Wiehl is believed to have been the oldest living caucasian to reside in the Hanford area.

Peter Gordon Young died January 27 from lung cancer at age 72. He began his legal career in Palo Alto, California, where he practiced for 10 years before returning to his hometown of Wenatchee in 1963. Mr. Young was appointed part-time superior court commissioner in 1978, and became the full-time commissioner nine years later. Memorials may be made to Chelan-Douglas CASA (427 Douglas St., Wenatchee, WA 98801); Central Washington Hospital Hospice (PO Box 1887, Wenatchee, WA 98807); or Woods House Conservatory of Music (PO Box 2071, Leavenworth, WA 98826).