CONTACT                                 
Judith Berrett
Director of Member and Community Relations
206-727-8212
judithb@wsba.org 

WSBA Board of Governors to Meet in Bellevue April 11-12

Seattle Washington, April 10, 2003 — The Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) Board of Governors will hold its next meeting April 11-12 at the Bellevue Hyatt Regency. The meeting will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Friday, and 9:00 a.m. to noon Saturday. It is open to the press and public.

Young Lawyers Division President Lance Hester will present their annual report, highlighting their many public-service activities. A new at-large governor representing the Young Lawyers Division will be elected at the meeting (he or she will serve a three-year term beginning in September). There will also be a report about the Greater Access and Assistance Project (GAAP), which serves moderate-income clients at reduced rates. GAAP is a joint project of the Young Lawyers Division and the Access to Justice Board.

Joy McLean, director of lawyer discipline, will give a presentation about the WSBA discipline system. Saturday morning, the board will pay tribute to Barrie Althoff, who was WSBA director of lawyer discipline for eight years and now serves as executive director of the Washington State Commission on Judicial Conduct.

Director of Legislative Affairs Gail Stone will discuss legislative items of interest. WSBA Governor Carl Carlson, chair of the WSBA Long-Range Planning Committee, will report on the committee's work, and the board will vote on the proposed long-range strategic and operational plans.

The Washington State Bar Association is a private, nonprofit organization authorized by the Washington Supreme Court to license the state's 27,300 lawyers. The WSBA both regulates lawyers under the authority of the Court and serves its members as a professional association all without public funding. As a regulatory agency, it administers the bar exam, provides record-keeping and licensing functions, and administers the lawyer discipline program. As a professional association, the WSBA provides continuing legal education for attorneys, in addition to numerous other educational and member-service activities.          

The governance of the WSBA is vested in its 14-person Board of Governors. There are three governors from the seventh congressional district; one from each of the other eight districts; and three at-large members, one of whom represents the Young Lawyers Division. The board meets regularly (every six weeks) at various locations around the state, and its meetings are open to the public. Much of the work of the Bar is carried out through 23 standing committees; 24 sections; and a Young Lawyers Division, with its many committees.    

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