FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 13, 2003

CONTACT

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

WSBA Board of Governors to Meet in Portland, October 17-18

Seattle Washington, October 13, 2003—The Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) Board of Governors will hold its next meeting October 17-18 at the Fifth Avenue Suites in Portland, Oregon. The meeting will be held from 1:15 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Friday, and 9:00 a.m. to noon on Saturday. It is open to the press and public.

Seattle attorney Ellen Dial, chair of the Ethics 2003 Committee (a special committee formed to evaluate Washington's Rules of Professional Conduct, the mandatory standards of ethical conduct for lawyers practicing in the state), will make a presentation about the rule addressing confidentiality. Rule 1.6 requires lawyers to maintain the confidentiality of client information in most circumstances, and it differs significantly from the American Bar Association's Model Rule 1.6. The committee has been devoting a good deal of time to studying this rule and has been actively soliciting input from, and exchanging views with, lawyers and members of the public.

Gail Stone, WSBA Director of Legislative Programs, will brief the board on issues relating to the practice of law or the administration of justice that are anticipated in the 2004 legislative session. Among these issues are funding for civil legal services, trial-court funding, and tort revisions.
The board will discuss a proposed court rule regarding access to electronic court records online. At issue is the balance between the competing interests of full disclosure and public access, versus privacy and the protection of children and victims. Donald Horowitz, chair of the Access to Justice Technology Bill of Rights Initiative, will brief the board on this matter. It is anticipated that the board will take a position on the proposed rule at their December 5-6 meeting.

The board will review the proposed 2003-2004 operational plan, which will be presented by Governor Carl Carlson, chair of the Long-Range Strategic Planning Committee. Governor Bryce Dille will give a financial report.

Also at the meeting, WSBA Director of Continuing Legal Education (CLE) Mark Sideman will report to the board. Each year, WSBA-CLE sponsors more than 100 seminars, addressing a wide variety of topics. In addition to live seminars at locations throughout the state, WSBA-CLE provides audio seminars over the Internet, video tapes, CDs and cassette tapes, and deskbooks.

Friday evening, the Board of Governors will host a reception with members of the Clark County Bar Association at the Vancouver campus of Washington State University. The reception provides an opportunity for lawyers and judges to meet informally with members of the Board of Governors and discuss topics of mutual interest or concern, as well as their "likes and dislikes" about the Bar. A highlight will be the honoring of a Clark County lawyer as the "local hero."

About the Washington State Bar Association
The Washington State Bar Association is a private, nonprofit organization authorized by the Washington Supreme Court to license the state's 27,600 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 2003-2004 president is David W. Savage of Pullman. 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.

# # #