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September 2007Application deadline: October 10, 2007 The WSBA Board of Governors is accepting letters of interest and résumés from members interested in serving a two-year term on the Statute Law Committee, commencing upon appointment. This 12-member committee seeks to foster accurate publication of laws and agency rules services in a professional and strictly nonpartisan and cost-effective manner. The primary responsibilities are to periodically codify, index, and publish the Revised Code of Washington; and to revise, correct, and harmonize the statutes of administrative or suggested legislative action as may be appropriate. The committee meets at least twice a year. Please submit a letter of interest and résumé to Bar Leaders Division, WSBA, 1325 Fourth Ave., Ste. 600, Seattle, WA 98101; or e-mail barleaders@wsba.org. Commission on Judicial Conduct Application deadline: October 10, 2007 The WSBA Board of Governors is seeking applicants interested in serving as a member on the Commission on Judicial Conduct. One member position is available. The Commission reviews complaints of ethical misconduct against judicial officers, discusses the progress of investigations, and takes action to resolve complaints. The goal of the Commission is to maintain confidence and integrity in the judicial system by seeking to preserve both judicial independence and public accountability. The public interest requires a fair and reasonable process to address judicial misconduct or disability, separate from the judicial appeals system that allows individual litigants to appeal legal errors. The Commission consists of 11 members who serve four-year terms — six nonlawyer citizens, three judges, and two lawyers. Each member has an alternate whose term coincides with their corresponding member's term. The lawyers must be admitted to practice in Washington and are appointed by the WSBA. The term for this member position will commence immediately upon appointment and expire on June 16, 2008. Please submit a letter of interest and résumé to WSBA Bar Leaders Division, 1325 Fourth Ave., Ste. 600, Seattle, WA 98101-2539, or e-mail barleaders@wsba.org. Further information on the Commission can be found at their website, www.cjc.state.wa.us, or by contacting them at 360-753-4585. Seeking Questionnaires from Candidates for Judicial Appointments Deadlines: September 3, 2007, for October 15, 2007, interview; November 29, 2007, for January 10, 2008, interview; January 31, 2008, for March 13, 2008, interview; May 1, 2008, for June 12, 2008, interview The WSBA Judicial Recommendation Committee (JRC) is accepting questionnaires from attorneys and judges seeking consideration for appointment to fill potential Washington State Supreme Court and Court of Appeals vacancies. Interested individuals will be interviewed by the Committee on the date listed above. The JRC's recommendations are reviewed by the WSBA Board of Governors and referred to Governor Gregoire for consideration when making judicial appointments. Materials must be received by the deadline listed above at the WSBA office. To obtain a questionnaire, visit the WSBA website at www.wsba.org/lawyers/groups/-judicialrecommendation or contact the WSBA at 206-727-8212 or 800-945-9722, ext. 8212, or barleaders@wsba.org. WSBA Court Rules and Procedures Committee 2007-2008 Agenda When it reconvenes in October, the WSBA Court Rules and Procedures Committee is scheduled to review the Superior Court Civil Rules (CR), the Mandatory Arbitration Rules (MAR), and the Civil Rules for Courts of Limited Jurisdiction (CRLJ). Suggestions regarding these rules or questions about the committee should be directed to Douglas Ende at 206-733-5917 or e-mail WSBACourtRules@wsba.org. Interested individuals are encouraged to participate in the work of the committee. For more information, see www.wsba.org/-lawyers/groups/courtrules/default.htm. Legal Foundation of Washington Notice of Public Meeting The trustees of the Legal Foundation of Washington will meet on September 20, 2007, at the Legal Foundation of Washington offices in Seattle. The public may appear in order to comment on the Foundation's activities between 9:00-9:30 a.m. This opportunity is made pursuant to Article I, Section 1.7 of the Bylaws of the Legal Foundation of Washington. For information, contact Caitlin Davis Carlson, executive director, at 206-624-2536 or caitlindc@legalfoundation.org. Trust Account Responsibilities and Retainers Task Force Submits Final Report The Trust Account Responsibilities and Retainers Task Force was formed by the WSBA Board of Governors in December 2005 after the Board withdrew Formal Ethics Opinion No. 186, which addressed the issue of whether and when fees paid to a lawyer in advance must be deposited into a trust account. The Task Force was convened to review the issue and make recommendations to the Board with respect to the handling of various types of advance fee arrangements. The final report of the Task Force, which recommends adoption of amendments to RPC 1.5 and RPC 1.15, was presented to the Board of Governors for a first reading on July 28, 2007, at the Board's meeting in Quincy. The Board of Governors is expected to take action on the Task Force recommendation at its meeting in Seattle on September 20-21. The report and recommendation of the Task Force can be found at www.wsba.org/lawyers/groups/trust-accounttaskforce/default.htm. WSBA Leadership Institute Seeks Fellows for 2008 Application deadline: September 15, 2007 The WSBA seeks applicants for the 2008 WSBA Leadership Institute. The Leadership Institute recognizes that many lawyers, especially those from diverse backgrounds and other underrepresented groups, have not been traditionally recruited for leadership positions or made aware of opportunities for leadership training, skill development, and professional growth available through the WSBA. Ten to 12 attorneys in practice for three to 10 years will be carefully selected for the fourth year of the program. The program will take place January to August 2008. Application and nomination forms and instructions are available on the WSBA website at www.wsba.org/lawyers/-leadership_-institute.htm. For further information, contact Camille C. Campbell at camillec@wsba.org, 206-727-8213 or 800-945-9722 ext. 8213. 2008 License Fee, Late Fees, and Suspension Information Address/Contact Information Update. Now is the ideal time to check that the WSBA has all of your correct contact information in its database for the 2008 license fee renewal packets scheduled to be mailed in early December. APR 13(b) requires all attorneys to update their office addresses and telephone numbers within 10 days of any change. 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 e-mailing questions@wsba.org, faxing the change to 206-727-8319, or calling the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA (9722) or 206-443-WSBA (9722). New Mandatory Disclosure Regarding Professional Liability Insurance. Pursuant to Rule 26 of the Admission to Practice Rules (APR), this licensing season all active WSBA members will be required for the first time to disclose on the annual licensing form whether they maintain professional liability insurance. Effective as of July 1, 2007, new admittees and members returning to active status are required to report this information at the time of admission on forms provided to them with their admission or status change documents. Note: Washington lawyers are not required to have professional liability insurance coverage; APR 26 requires only that active Washington lawyers report to the WSBA whether they have such coverage. Because this is a new requirement and the information will be collected during the upcoming licensing season, the Lawyer Directory information for most lawyers will not reflect whether there is professional liability coverage until at least the end of March 2008. As stated above, an exception will be lawyers newly admitted or recently returned to active status, who are required to report in connection with becoming active. For more information on this rule, see http://pro. WSBA Bylaw on Armed Forces Fee Exemption. WSBA will begin processing Armed Forces Exemptions in December for the 2008 licensing year. WSBA Bylaw Section II.E.1.b., provides for a fee exemption for eligible members of the Armed Forces. This section of the WSBA Bylaws provides: "An active member of the Association who is activated from reserve duty status to full-time active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States for more than sixty days in any calendar year, or who is deployed or stationed outside the United States for any period of time for full-time active military duty in the Armed Forces of the United States shall be exempt from the payment of membership fees and assessments for the Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection upon submitting to the Executive Director satisfactory proof that he or she is so activated, deployed or stationed. All requests for exemption must be postmarked or delivered to the Association offices on or before March 1st of the year for which the exemption is requested. Eligible members must apply every year they wish to claim the exemption. Each exemption applies for only the calendar year in which it is granted, and exemptions may be granted for a maximum total of five years for any member." WSBA members whose membership status is active and who are otherwise eligible for the Armed Forces exemption as described above can apply for a waiver of WSBA license fees beginning in December. (WSBA members whose WSBA membership status is inactive or emeritus must still pay the annual WSBA license fees for that status.) If you are an active member and believe you are eligible for the fee exemption, contact the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA (9722), or e-mail questions@wsba.org; or contact Kevin McKee at kevinm@wsba.org, or 800-945-9722, ext. 8243, or 206-727-8243 for application information beginning in December. MCLE Certification for Active Members Due Date for MCLE Reporting. WSBA members are divided into three MCLE reporting groups based on year of admission. (Newly admitted members are exempt. See "Newly Admitted Members" below.) Group 1: Admitted through 1975, 1991, 1994, 1997, 2000, 2003, or 2006 Group 2: Admitted in 1976 through 1983, 1992, 1995, 1998, 2001, 2004, or 2007 Group 3: Admitted in 1984 through 1990, 1993, 1996, 1999, 2002, or 2005 Reporting Group Next Reporting Period Complete Credits by File C2/C3 Form by
• At least 45 total credits of MCLE Board-approved CLE activities must be taken, which need to include a minimum of 30 live credits and six ethics credits. The courses must meet the requirements of APR 11, but they do not need to be taken in Washington state. Many courses are offered around the world which meet the requirements of APR 11. "Live" courses include classroom instruction, live web casts (not pre-recorded web casts), and teleconferences. "Ethics" courses, and segments of larger courses, must meet the requirements of APR 11 Regulation 101(n) or (o) to be considered for ethics credit. • Pre-recorded self-study (A/V) courses cannot be more than five years old, except MCLE Board-approved "skills-based" courses. Pre-recorded self-study courses include the traditional audio-visual (A/V) media of video tapes and cassette tapes. They also include archived web casts, DVDs, compact disks, and other media with a sound track of the MCLE Board-approved course presentation. Written materials should be included with these courses and reviewed prior to claiming credit. In addition, written materials must be purchased by each member, where required by the sponsor, prior to claiming credit. • Six pro bono credits can be earned per year. Two of these credits are for approved annual training, which must be taken prior to being able to earn credit for the pro bono work. Four pro bono credits may be earned each year if at least four hours of pro bono work were provided through a qualified legal services provider. Carry-over CLE Credits. Carry-over credits from the previous reporting period may be used to meet the requirements of the current reporting period. If your current reporting period credits total exceeds 45, you may carry over a maximum combined total of 15 credits to your next reporting period. Only two ethics credits and five A/V credits may be carried over. C2/C3 Reporting Requirement. All active members due to report are required to file a Continuing Legal Education Certification (C2/C3) form listing all CLE courses taken for credit compliance. The deadline for filing your C2/C3 form is February 1 of the year following the end of your reporting period. Note: • Your online roster is not a substitute for filing the C2/C3 form. • The C2/C3 form is a declaration and must be signed and dated, and the city and state where signed must be identified. • C2/C3 forms are included in the license packets sent in early December to all members due to report (which will be Group 1 members this year). • All CLE courses listed on member rosters as of October 2007 will be printed on the back of the C2 form. If you took more CLE courses after October 1, and if they appear on your online roster and you do not want to hand-write them on the back of the C2 form, you may print a copy of your roster and attach it to your C2/C3 form. State on your C2/C3 form that the attached online roster printout is a true and correct statement of the CLE courses taken for credit compliance. • You must verify that the credit hours listed on the C2/C3 and on your online profile correctly reflect the hours actually attended for each CLE. Online credits may be edited by clicking on the "edit" link next to each course. Credits on the C2/C3 may be corrected manually. • The C2/C3 form should be filed by February 1 even if all the credits needed for compliance have not been completed. MCLE Late Fees. All active members who have not completed their credits by December 31 of the last year of their reporting period, or who submit their C2/C3 reporting forms after March 1 of the following year (the end of the grace period after the February 1 deadline), must pay a late fee. The late fee for the first reporting period of non-compliance is $150 and increases by $300 for each consecutive three-year reporting period of noncompliance. Newly Admitted Members. If you are a newly admitted member, you are exempt from reporting CLE credits for the year of your admission and the following calendar year. If you were admitted in 2006, you will not report for this reporting period (2005-2007) even though you are in Group 1. You will first report at the end of the 2008-2010 reporting period. Members admitted in 2007 will not report until the end of the 2009-2011 reporting period. When you report at the end of your first reporting period, you may claim all CLE credits earned on or after your date of admission to the WSBA. MCLE Comity. If you are an active member of the WSBA and your primary office for the practice of law is outside of Washington and if you are a member of the Oregon, Idaho, or Utah state bars (comity states), you may meet your Washington mandatory CLE requirements by providing proof of current MCLE compliance from your comity state bar. Only a Certificate of MCLE Compliance from your comity state bar (not a "Certificate of Good Standing"), sent with your WSBA C2/C3 form, will satisfy your MCLE requirements in Washington. MCLE System — Course Listing and Member Profiles. You can use the online MCLE system to: review courses taken and credits earned; apply for course approval; apply for writing credit, pro bono credit, or prep-time credit; and search for approved courses being offered. To use the MCLE system, go to the WSBA website at www.wsba.org and click on "MCLE Web Site" in the upper left corner. On the next screen, click on the "Member" tab, then select "Member Login." The online instructions lead you through the process of creating a confidential password and using the system. Online help is available. If you have questions about using the MCLE system or about the MCLE compliance requirements, see the online FAQs at www.wsba.org/lawyers/licensing/faq-mcle.htm, call the WSBA Service Center at 800-945-WSBA (9722) or 206-443-WSBA (9722), or e-mail questions@wsba.org. New APR 11 Regulation 104(e) Requirements for In-House CLEs. Starting with the 2005-2007 reporting period, members are limited to a total of 15 credits of private law firm CLEs and 15 credits of corporate legal department CLEs in each reporting period, regardless of who the private legal sponsor was and regardless of whether the course was open or closed. There are no limits on the number of credits you may earn at CLEs sponsored by government agencies. These limitations are the result of amendments to APR 11 Regulation 104(e) adopted by the Supreme Court that went into effect on November 8, 2005. The Supreme Court will not be changing this requirement in 2007. RPCs Amended On July 11, 2007, the Washington State Supreme Court entered an order adopting a WSBA-proposed amendment to RPC 1.15A(e). The amendment, which becomes effective on September 1, 2007, changes the language of that section so that the annual written reporting requirement applicable to all client property held by a lawyer will apply to funds only. For the text of the amended rule, please see the Washington Courts website at http://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/adopted/RPC1.15A.doc. Women in Solo Practice Group The WSBA Lawyers Assistance Program (LAP) is offering a group this fall for women who are actively engaged in solo practice. The group will meet weekly for eight sessions, from 8:00 to 9:30 am on Wednesdays, starting October 3 and ending on November 14. It will be limited to a maximum of 10 members. There will be a sliding fee scale. For more information, call either Rebecca at 206-727-8269 or 800-945-9722, ext. 9269, or Abby at 206-733-5988, or 800-945-9722, ext. 5988. LAP Solution of the Month: Addicted? Have you tried to slow down or stop drinking, drug use, gambling, or an addiction to pornography, and found it was overwhelming to stick with that decision? LAP has an experienced addiction specialist on staff to help with counseling and referrals. Call Abby Smith, MA, LMHC, CDP, at 206-733-5988 or 800-945-9722, ext. 5988. Computer Clinic The WSBA offers a hands-on computer clinic for members wanting to learn more about what Microsoft Office programs such as Outlook, PowerPoint, Excel, and Word, as well as Adobe Acrobat, can do for a lawyer. Are you a total beginner? No problem. The clinic teaches helpful tips you can use immediately. Computers are provided, and seating is limited to 15 members. There is no charge, and no CLE credits are offered. The clinic on September 10 will focus on Outlook and case-management software, and the clinic on September 24 will focus on computer basics: getting started; navigating through Windows; computer features; and security and maintenance. Clinics are held from 10 a.m. to noon at the WSBA office. For more information or to RSVP, contact Julie Salmon at 206-733-5914, 800-945- 9722, ext. 5914, or juliesa@wsba.org. Please note the WSBA's new address: 1325 Fourth Ave., Ste. 600, Seattle. LOMAP and Ethics on the Road: The 2007 Traveling Seminars Plan to attend in Port Angeles on September 18, Port Townsend on September 19, Port Orchard on September 20, or Friday Harbor on September 25. Registration is $89. This seminar has been approved for four CLE ethics credits. For more information and a complete calendar of fall seminars, contact Julie Salmon at 206-733-5914, or 800-945-9722, ext. 5914, or juliesa@wsba.org, or visit www.lomap.org. Contract Lawyer Meeting Discuss the issues with other contract lawyers on September 11 from noon to 1:30 at the WSBA office. Bring your lunch — coffee is provided — and network with other contract lawyers. For more information, contact Julie Salmon at 206-733-5914, 800-945-9722, ext. 5914, or juliesa@wsba.org. Job Seekers Discussion Group Looking for a job or making a transition? Join us the second Wednesday of each month from noon to 1:30 p.m. The next meeting is September 12 at the WSBA office. On October 10, the topic will be "Working the Net: What Makes a Good Attorney Webpage?" There will be opportunities to network, and exchange information and ideas with other lawyers looking to make a change. No need to RSVP. For more information contact Jennifer L. Favell, Ph.D. at 206-727-8267, or 800-945-9722, ext. 8267, or jenniferf@wsba.org. Please note the WSBA's new address: 1325 Fourth Ave., Ste. 600, Seattle. Upcoming Board of Governors Meetings September 20-21, Seattle • October 26-27, Winthrop • December 7-8, Everett With the exception of the executive session, Board of Governors meetings are open, and all WSBA members are welcome to attend. RSVPs are appreciated but not required. Contact Donna Sato at 206-727-8244, 800-945-9722, ext. 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. Usury Rate The average coupon equivalent yield from the first auction of 26-week treasury bills in August 2007 was 4.927 percent. Therefore, the maximum allowable usury rate for September is 12 percent. Information from January 1987 to date can be found at www.wsba.org/media/publications/barnews/usury.htm. |
