Washington Residents Receive Compensation from the Washington State Bar Association's Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection

Seattle, Washington, October 7, 2003—In fiscal year 2003, the Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection of the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) made gifts totaling approximately $126,000 to 51 applicants who were victims of the dishonest conduct of 21 lawyers. The misuse of clients' money happens rarely, but when it does, the Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection is there to provide compensation.

The fund is financed solely by lawyers—no tax dollars are used. There are approximately 24,000 active lawyers in Washington, and each one makes an annual contribution to the fund. The fund is administered by the WSBA pursuant to rules of the Washington State Supreme Court.
This year, individual gifts from the fund ranged from a few hundred dollars to $50,000. The majority of these applications concerned unearned fees paid to lawyers who had abandoned their practice or failed to perform the services for which they were employed, and who failed to refund advanced fees and costs. A small number of the applications involved outright theft or conversion of client funds for the lawyer's own purposes. All of the lawyers involved were disbarred or suspended, or are deceased.

The names of recipients of gifts from the fund are kept confidential, in order to protect their privacy. Following is the list of lawyers who caused the losses compensated by the fund:

Name	WSBA No.	City	Status
Bernard A. Clark	25031	Tacoma	Disbarred
Steven Cobb	21926	Edmonds	Disbarred
Clayton C. Cochran	23102	Vancouver	Disbarred
Terry L. Deglow	13357	Spokane	Disbarred
Karl W. Ferrier	25217	Ocean Park	Suspended
C. Alan Grider	16927	Clarkston	Disbarred
Ricardo Guarnero	18922	Seattle	Suspended
Rosalynn D. Guillen	22872	Seattle	Disbarred
Trenidad Hernandez	25849	Federal Way and Yakima	Disbarred
Mickie Jarvill	14049	Coupeville	Disbarred
Paul H. King	7370	Seattle	Suspended
Richard Kyaw	21312	Tacoma	Disbarred
Robert H. Lewis	23635	Tacoma	Disbarred
Robert C. Lyons	22275	Tacoma	Disbarred
Brenda J. Means	26180	Mill Creek	Disbarred
Douglas M. O'Coyne	15689	Spokane	Deceased
Stephen L. Palmberg	3178	Grand Coulee	Disbarred
Jeffrey B. Ranes	7732	Montesano	Disbarred
Glenn E. Reed	5328	Mount Vernon	Disbarred
Charles E. Robbins	3976	Puyallup	Disbarred
Lois M. Wood	17878	Pasco	Suspended

Washington was one of the first states in the country to establish a client-protection fund. The WSBA "indemnity fund" was first established in 1960, and, in 1994, the Washington State Supreme Court established the current Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection at the request of the WSBA. Today, all 50 states, as well as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and other countries, maintain similar funds. Yet similar protection and compensation are unknown in most other professions. Since 1960, the WSBA fund has given more than $2 million to the victims of the few dishonest lawyers in this state.

The members of the WSBA Board of Governors serve as trustees of the fund. They appoint and oversee the Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection Committee, which comprises 11 lawyers and two nonlawyers. During 2003, Pullman attorney Scott J. Bergstedt chaired the committee, and, since 1988, WSBA General Counsel Robert Welden has served as counsel. A copy of the fund's 2003 Annual Report and further information about the fund are available online, or by calling the WSBA at 800-945-WSBA or 206-443-WSBA, or e-mailing questions@wsba.org.
The mission of the WSBA is to promote justice and serve its members and the public. Among the ways the WSBA does this is through the Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection, and by administering and operating the WSBA's lawyer discipline system on behalf of the Washington State Supreme Court. Those who have a complaint against a lawyer and wish to file a grievance or submit an application to the fund can contact the WSBA. Information about filing a grievance.

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 president is David W. Savage of Pullman. The board meets every six weeks at various locations around the state, and its meetings are open to the public. Much of the work of the WSBA is carried out through its 23 standing committees, 24 sections, and a Young Lawyers Division.

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