January 2002 

FYI: For Your Information

A panel of 11 judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit has ruled that the Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts (IOLTA) program, a major funding source for civil legal services for the poor, is not a violation of the Fifth Amendment. The opinion overrules a decision handed down a year ago by a single judge which held that IOLTA is a taking.

IOLTA uses the interest earned on lawyers' and limited practice officers' trust accounts to fund 35 legal-aid programs in Washington state. The interest is generally so small an amount or held for such a short period of time that clients do not achieve a net benefit. The Washington Legal Foundation, a Washington, DC-based conservative public-policy group, sued to invalidate the IOLTA program in 1997, asserting that it was an unconstitutional taking of private property.

"...[A]t a minimum, all attorneys bear the ethical responsibility at some point in their career to represent indigent clients or in some manner work to make the legal system accessible to those who could not otherwise afford it," wrote the Honorable Kim McLean Wardlaw in her opinion for the majority.

The opinion continued, "...when LPOs are admitted to perform a limited practice of law, they are held to the same legal and ethical standards as lawyers. Thus, they, too, are expected to safeguard their clients' property and to do their best to ensure that the legal system is available to all who need it."

A secondary issue, whether or not IOLTA is a violation of plaintiffs' First Amendment rights, has been remanded to the Honorable John Coughenour of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, in Seattle.

The WSBA has many dedicated staff members, and each January we recognize those who have reached significant milestones in the previous year. Congratulations to the following staff members!

25 years — Shirley Naccarato

20 years — Cindy Jacques, John Redenbaugh, Bob Welden

10 years — Jacki Browning, Pat Dieken, Sherry Johnson

5 years — Joanne Abelson, Clare Cox, Diane Plummer-Cranston, Kelly Cronin, Stephanie Benson-Greer, Marsha Matsumoto, Tom Russell, Chris Sutton

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.

Deadline for nominations: March 1, 2002

The Council on Public Legal Education is preparing a legal resource guide for Washington media. The guide will provide general information about the law and justice system, and will also include a directory of experts on specific legal topics who are willing to talk to the media. The council is seeking nominations of experts to be listed in the guide. Ideally, the experts will be well-established practitioners or scholars with expertise in one or more substantive legal area, with a history of public service. The council will offer training in working with the media.

Nominations, which may be made by self or peers, should include a brief résumé (including public-service activities and organizational affiliations), and a list of legal topics on which the expert feels qualified to speak. (The complete list of topics are available for review at www.plecouncil.org/drafts/media; suggestions of additional topics are welcome.)

The deadline for the print edition of the guide is March 1. Ongoing nominations will be accepted for the online edition. Nominations should be submitted to the WSBA, Council on Public Legal Education, 2101 Fourth Ave., Fourth Fl., Seattle, WA 98121-2330, or e-mailed to plecouncil@wsba.org.

For further information, see http://www.plecouncil.org/ or contact Pam Inglesby, WSBA public legal education manager, at pami@wsba.org or 206-727-8226.

Licensing packets, which include license fee, trust account and MCLE reporting (C-2 Compliance Affidavit) forms, were mailed in early December. If you have not received your licensing packet by the first week in January, please call the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA, or e-mail questions@wsba.org to request a duplicate. Please note that it is your responsibility to pay your annual license fee, regardless of whether you receive the licensing packet.

In addition to your license fee, per APR 15, the Supreme Court has ordered all active members to pay a $13 assessment to the Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection (LFCP). We encourage you to pay your license fee (and active members the LFCP fee) promptly to avoid penalties. A 20 percent late-payment penalty is imposed if the annual license fee is not paid by March 1, 2002. After April 1, 2002, a 50 percent late-payment penalty is imposed. If your license fee, penalty assessment or LFCP fee remain unpaid after May 1, 2002, the delinquency will be certified to the Supreme Court, which will enter an order of suspension from the practice of law. In order to be reinstated to your former status after suspension for nonpayment, you must pay double the amount of the combined fee and penalty (triple the original fee). For active members, nonpayment of the LFCP fee is also cause for suspension.

For more information, please see the WSBA Web site at www.wsba.org/lawyers/licensing/, or contact the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA, 206-443-WSBA or questions@wsba.org.

Active WSBA members who are in Reporting Group 1 (active members admitted through 1975; or in 1991, 1994, 1997 or 2000*) will report CLE credits for activities undertaken in 1999, 2000 and 2001.

Newly admitted members are exempt from reporting CLE credits during their year of admission and the following calendar year. If you were admitted in 2000 you will not report this reporting period even though you are in Group 1. You will first report at the end of 2004. (New admittees may earn CLE credits starting from their admission date, and those credits may be applied toward their first reporting period.)

If you are in Reporting Group 1, please do the following to meet your CLE requirements:

1) Complete approved CLE credits totaling at least 39 general and six ethics for the three-year period (1999 through 2001);

2) Submit these credits and attendance to the WSBA either through the sponsor or directly to the WSBA;

3) Sign the C-2 Compliance Affidavit certifying attendance of the listed courses; and

4) Send the C-2 Compliance Affidavit to the WSBA by February 1, 2002.

Your C-2 Compliance Affidavit contains all courses and credits to your record for 2001 CLE activities submitted by sponsors. Please review it carefully and make any necessary changes or additions. If you have CLE credits for activities in 2001 that were not earned through live courses, you must enter this information. You must also enter course/credit information for activities undertaken in 1999 and 2000. You must then sign, under penalty of perjury, that the credit information you submit is true and correct.

The new online MCLE Credit-Tracking System (http://pro.wsba.org/) is now ready for you to use. Here's what you can do using the new system:

•  View your CLE courses and credits on your online attendance roster.

•  Make changes to your online attendance roster.

•  Search for approved courses.

•  Apply for course approval.

To enter the MCLE Credit-Tracking System, go to http://pro.wsba.org/, select Member Login, and follow the onscreen instructions. If you have questions, please contact the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA.

District competitions for the YMCA Mock Trial Program will be held February 8-March 3, and the state competition will be held March 22-23. Volunteer raters are needed for all competitions. For specific county information, contact Jason Leggett at 360-534-0155 or wamocktrial@earthlink.net.

In spring 2001, a 30-page "glass-ceiling" survey was sent to all private law firms in Washington with five or more attorneys. The survey was designed to answer the following question: Based on objective data, what is the status of women and minority lawyers in private law firms in the state of Washington? After years of pondering the question, sharing anecdotes, and reviewing the results of studies conducted in other states and nationally, a coalition of organizations determined it was time to get an accurate answer to that question.

The Glass-Ceiling Task Force, composed of representatives from the King County Bar Association; Washington Women Lawyers, state and King County chapters; the Supreme Court Commission on Gender and Justice; the Washington State Bar Association; Northwest Women's Law Center; and Washington Women Defenders, worked for more than two years to devise a plan for conducting the survey, design a survey, raise money to administer the survey, and employ a research firm with the expertise to ensure valid and reliable results.

The survey was mailed in May 2001. A firm administrator or designee was asked to respond on behalf of the firm, providing information based on the firm's circumstances during 2000. Questions covered recruitment and hiring, promotion and retention, compensation, professional growth, work life and firm culture, and anti-discrimination and sexual harassment practices. A final report is now being prepared.

Survey findings will be reported in the February issue of Bar News, with full survey findings available upon request.

The Legal Foundation of Washington will host the 16th Annual Goldmark Award Luncheon on Thursday, February 21, 2002 at the Washington State Convention & Trade Center from noon to 1:30 pm. The Legal Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that has distributed over $51,000,000 for legal services to the poor since 1985.

The Honorable William L. Dwyer, senior U.S. district court judge for the Western District of Washington, will receive the Goldmark Award for Distinguished Service in recognition of a lifetime of exceptional leadership, both as an attorney and as a judge. Justice Rosalie Abella of the Court of Appeals for Ontario, Canada, will give the keynote address.

The Goldmark Award honors the memory of Charles A. Goldmark, a Seattle attorney, community leader, and ardent supporter of access to justice. To make a reservation, please return the form below with your check payable to the Legal Foundation of Washington.

o Yes, I would like to honor the work of legal services by attending the luncheon. I will bring ________ additional guests. ($35/person enclosed).

o My firm would like to be an Equal Justice Sponsor ($1,000 enclosed). Eight members of our firm will attend. (A charitable contribution of $720 will help cover luncheon expenses.)

o My firm would like to be an Equal Justice Supporter ($500 enclosed). Four members of our firm will attend. (A charitable contribution of $360 will help cover luncheon expenses.)

o I would like to be a Goldmark Donor ($100 enclosed). Two lunches will be provided and a charitable contribution of $30 will help cover luncheon expenses.

o No, I cannot attend the luncheon, but I would like to support the luncheon with a donation of $ __________ .

Name (s): ___________________________________

o Please check if a vegetarian meal is preferred.

Legal Foundation of Washington, 500 Union Street, Suite 545, Seattle, WA 98101; phone 206-624-2536, ext. 10; fax 206-382-3396. The Legal Foundation of Washington is a 501(c) (3) status institution.

The WSBA Judicial Recommendation Committee is accepting applications from attorneys and judges seeking consideration for appointment to fill potential appellate-court vacancies. Interested candidates will be interviewed by the committee at its February 8 meeting. The deadline for receipt of questionnaires by the WSBA is 5:00 p.m., January 4, 2002.

The committee's recommendations are reviewed by the WSBA Board of Governors and then referred to Governor Locke for review when appointments are made to fill vacancies on the Washington Court of Appeals or Supreme Court. To obtain a questionnaire, please contact the WSBA, 2101 Fourth Ave., Fourth Fl., Seattle, WA 98121-2330; 206-727-8239; or jerrin@wsba.org. Please specify whether you need the questionnaire designed for a judge or an attorney.

Pursuant to GR22, family law cases (any case filed under RCW chapters 26.09, 26.10, 26.12, 26.18, 26.21, 26.23, 26.26, 26.27, 26.50 or 26.52) will be required to submit a completed confidential information form (CIF) at the time of the initial filing. The CIF and confidential financial source documents cover sheet are available at no charge at the King County Superior Court Clerk's office Web site (http://www.metrokc.gov/kcsc), in the clerk's office, and on the Washington state courts' Web site (http://www.courts.wa.gov/). Other family law forms may be purchased from the clerk's office or found on the Web sites.

Law Week 2002 is an exciting opportunity for lawyers and judges to bring legal education into the classroom. Each year, Law Week provides an enriching experience to youth through positive interactions with lawyers and judges. Law Week 2002 will take place the week of May 1. To learn more about the program or to participate, visit www.wsba.org/media/publications/lawweek/ or contact Lisa KauzLoric at 206-733-5944 or lisak@wsba.org.

The WSBA Law Office Management Assistance Program (LOMAP) offers members the chance to "kick the tires" of a host of software programs used in law offices. Come in and try out programs such as TimeSlips, Amicus Attorney and TrialWorks. For more information, contact Peter Roberts at 206-727-8237 or peter@wsba.org.

The WSBA is a sponsor of the ABA Tech Show 2002 in Chicago, March 14-16. This means WSBA members are eligible for a $100 registration discount. For more information, contact Peter Roberts at 206-727-8237 or peter@wsba.org, or visit the Tech Show Web site at http://www.techshow.com/.

Yes, it's possible! Regulation 103(g) of the Washington State Board of Continuing Legal Education allows WSBA members to earn up to six (6) hours of credit annually for providing pro bono direct representation under the auspices of a qualified legal-services provider.

APR 8(e) creates a limited license status of emeritus for attorneys otherwise retired from the practice of law, to practice pro bono legal services through a qualified legal-services organization.

For more information, contact Access to Justice Liaison Sharlene Steele at 206-727-8262 or sharlene@wsba.org.

The Law Office Management Assistance Program (LOMAP) hosted a symposium titled Convergence: Essential Business Skills for New Associates and Solo Lawyers on September 20-21, 2001. The program focused on 58 business skills for lawyers that the Association of Legal Administrators identified as essential. "Most importantly," says LOMAP Practice Advisor Peter Roberts, "the business-skills symposium was the first event of its kind to bring together those involved in the academic training, hiring, job-skills training and disciplining of lawyers."

The lawyer directory on the WSBA Web site has been enhanced! A link to your Web site can be added to your directory listing, so current and potential clients can find out more about you and your practice at the click of a button.

The fee for this service is $75 annually ($50 if you sign up July 1 or later). If your firm has seven or more lawyers, you'll save through our special pricing structure. For more information and sign-up instructions, see www.wsba.org/media/publications/barnews/addlink.htm.

The American Bar Association Section of Business Law is accepting nominations for its National Public Service Award, which recognizes significant pro bono services rendered to the poor in a business context, and the achievements resulting form the public service work for the clients represented. For more information, contact JoAnne Travis at 312-988-5680 or travisj@staff.abanet.org .

The WSBA store is now open online (http://www.wsba.org/store/default.htm). You can purchase Cutter & Buck polo shirts, twill baseball caps, ball point pens, and brass luggage tags emblazoned with the WSBA logo. The store features secure online credit-card ordering. You can also purchase logo merchandise by calling the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA.

Polo shirt (pewter or white, size L or XL) – $56

Baseball cap (stone) – $24

Ball point pen – $12

Luggage tag – $7

Prices include shipping and handling.

January 18-19 – Olympia

April 5-6 – Walla Walla

May 10-11 – Stevenson

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 5th Annual WSBA Staff Holiday Auction raised more than $3,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation and First Place. The Make-A-Wish Foundation grants the wishes of children with life-threatening illnesses. First Place is a service agency devoted to helping children and families who are homeless or in transition.

The 2001-2002 Resources membership directory is now on sale for half-price:
$8.50 – WSBA members ($9.25 in WA)

$17.50 – non-WSBA members ($19.04 in WA)

To order a copy of Resources, call the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA, or mail a request to WSBA Order Processing, 2101 Fourth Ave., Fourth Fl., Seattle, WA 98121-2330. Payment may be made by check (payable to WSBA), MasterCard or Visa, and must accompany your order.

The WSBA is pleased to offer photo bar cards to members. This is an option for those who are interested in having their photo on their card; original and replacement cards without photos are provided at no cost. Here's how it works:

• You can either e-mail an electronic photo in .bmp format or mail a hard-copy photo that we will scan. Photos can be any size.

• You may submit a black-and-white or color photo, however all photos will be printed in black and white.

• The cost is $10 for cards created from electronic photos, and $15 for cards created from hard-copy photos. Checks, MasterCard and Visa are accepted for payment.

• If you're mailing a hard-copy photo, please mail the photo with the completed order form and payment.

• If you're e-mailing an electronic photo, mail the completed order form with your payment. If paying by credit card, you may fax the order form.

If you have questions, please contact the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA, 206-443-WSBA, or questions@wsba.org.

YES! I would like to order a photo bar card. Select one of the following:

o Photo submitted electronically $10.00

(If in Washington, add WA state sales tax @ 8.8%.) .88

Total $ _____

o Hard-copy photo enclosed $15.00

(If in Washington, add WA state sales tax @ 8.8%.) $ 1.32

Total $_____

If submitting an electronic photo, please e-mail to allisonp@wsba.org. We recommend that you e-mail the photo the same day you send this form. If paying by credit card, you may fax this form to 206-727-8219. If submitting a hard-copy photo, be sure to write your name on the back and enclose it with this form. Your photo will be returned to you.

o check enclosed (payable to WSBA) o MasterCard o Visa

Credit-card no. ________________________________ Exp. date ____________

Name as it appears on card___________________________________________

Signature_______________________________________

Please send to:

Name _______________________________________

Address _____________________________________

City/State/ZIP ________________________________

For office use only: 1-40199-180

Date ___________Check no. ________________ Amount ________________