May 2008

The Board’s Work

WSBA Board of Governors meeting: March 7–8, Tacoma

by Michael Heatherly

Meeting March 7–8 in Tacoma, the Board of Governors approved the addition of an Eastern Washington bar examination site for 2010 and filled the vacant seat of a resigning board member.

Regarding the long-discussed proposal for an Eastern Washington bar examination, the Board voted 7–3 to administer the examination in Spokane in summer of 2010, at the same time it is given in Bellevue. Supporters of the proposal included Dean Earl Martin of Gonzaga University School of Law, who testified via teleconference. He suggested that “equities strongly favor” giving Eastern Washington residents a local option for taking the examination. A survey of Gonzaga law graduates showed that they spend an average of more than $1,000 in travel-related expenses to take the test in Western Washington, he said. WSBA surveys have shown that approximately 115–150 out of roughly 900 total summer examinees would take the examination in Spokane. Cost estimates for adding the examination have ranged from $23,000 to $35,770 plus additional staffing, depending in part on the exact location of the test. Because of the additional expense, logistical challenges, and need for additional staff resources, WSBA staff had opposed the change.

However, despite the potential hurdles, a majority of BOG members, including several from Western Washington, spoke in support of the proposal, saying it would add to WSBA’s credibility among Eastern Washington members. In response, Governors Doug Lawrence and Sal Mungia, who voted against the change, noted that Western Washington residents also incur travel and lodging expenses to take the examination in Bellevue and questioned whether the savings to Eastern Washington residents justifies the additional expense and logistical obstacles WSBA would face. Proponents replied that a modest increase in the examination fee would cover the additional costs and that staffing and other issues can be solved in the more than two years remaining before the first Spokane examination.

In other action, the Board interviewed three finalists to fill the at-large Board of Governors position representing the Washington Young Lawyers Division. The seat was vacated by Jason Vail, who relocated to Chicago. The board selected Seattle solo practitioner Carla C. Lee. Ms. Lee is involved in several WSBA committees as well as other organizations, including Washington Women Lawyers, the Loren Miller Bar Association, and Washington Lawyers for the Arts. Ms. Lee is the first African-American woman to serve on the BOG. The other finalists for the position were Lisa J. Dickinson of Spokane and Gyasi Ross of Brownsville. Ms. Lee will serve out the remainder of former Governor Vail’s term and, under a recent change in bylaws, be eligible for re-election to a second term.

Meanwhile, the board unanimously approved an amendment of the WSBA Bylaws that spells out the degree to which the WSBA president, BOG members, and other WSBA officers (the president-elect, immediate past president, and executive director) may become personally involved in political campaigns and related activity. The rules were meant to generally allow political participation by those covered while prohibiting most political activity involving judicial races or issues directly affecting the administration of justice. Under the new rules, the WSBA president is prohibited during his or her term of office from publicly supporting or contributing funds to a candidate for judicial office, a candidate for an office (such as county prosecutor) that must be held by an attorney, or a candidate for an office (such as mayor) in which the holder has the power to appoint, hire, or fire judicial officers. The rules contain an exception for candidates who are members of the president’s immediate family. The president is also prohibited from publicly taking a side in any issue being submitted to the voters or pending before the state Legislature, unless the BOG has specifically authorized the president to do so. Current WSBA President Stan Bastian spoke in support of the limitations, saying that since he has been serving as president, he has learned that many WSBA members indeed pay close attention to the president’s apparent position on political issues. Also under the new rules, BOG members and other WSBA officers  are prohibited from supporting or contributing to candidates for offices that must be filled by an attorney. They may participate, however, if the candidate is an immediate family member.

In other business, the BOG approved a proposed amendment to General Rule 34 that would lower the income threshold for parties to qualify for a waiver of court and clerk’s fees in civil matters. The rule reduces the eligibility requirement from 200 percent of the federal poverty level to 125 percent. The provision will be forwarded to the Washington State Supreme Court with a recommendation that it be adopted. The change would bring the eligibility standard for civil matters into accord with the standard for indigency in criminal cases.

The BOG nominated Spokane attorney Elizabeth Schoedel to replace the Honorable Gregory Tripp for a three-year term on the Access to Justice Board. Judge Tripp’s term expires this year and he is ineligible for reappointment, having now served two terms. The BOG also nominated Gregory Dallaire for reappointment to the ATJ Board. The nominations will be forwarded to the Washington State Supreme Court, which makes the appointments. The BOG also appointed six people to the Council on Public Legal Education. They are the Honorable Leila Mills, the Honorable Judith Hightower, Linda McLane, Judith Billings, Margit McGuire, and Mary Hotchkiss. 

Bar News Editor Michael Heatherly practices in Bellingham and can be reached at 360-312-5156 or barnewseditor@wsba.org.