FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   
October 29, 2007     

Contact: Stephanie Perry
Communications Specialist/Website Editor
206-733-5932; stephaniep@wsba.org

WSBA President Stanley A. Bastian Admitted to American College of Trial Lawyers

(SEATTLE) — The Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) is pleased to announce that WSBA President Stanley A. Bastian has been inducted as a fellow to the American College of Trial Lawyers (ACTL).

Born in Beaverton, Oregon, Bastian earned his bachelor’s degree at the University of Oregon, and his law degree from the University of Washington School of Law. Bastian practices in Wenatchee, where he is a shareholder in the firm of Jeffers, Danielson, Sonn & Aylward P.S., which he joined in 1988. His practice focuses on civil litigation, labor and employment, police liability, and municipal law. Bastian is married to Chelan County District Court Judge Alicia Nakata; they have two teenage daughters, Audrey and Elenore.

The College extends fellowships only to trial lawyers who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards for ethical conduct, professionalism, civility, and collegiality. Lawyers must have a minimum of fifteen years' trial experience before they are eligible for fellowship.

Membership in the College cannot exceed one percent of the total number of lawyers in a state or province. Currently, there are approximately 5,660 members in the United States and Canada, including active, judicial, honorary, and emeritus fellows. According to the ACTL, there are currently 143 members in Washington state.

Founded in 1950, the College is dedicated to maintaining and improving the standards of trial practice, the administration of justice, and the ethics of the profession. Qualified lawyers are called to fellowship in the College from all branches of trial practice. They are selected from among advocates who represent plaintiffs or defendants in civil proceedings of all types, as well as prosecutors and criminal defense lawyers.

About the Washington State Bar Association
The WSBA is part of the judicial branch, exercising a governmental function authorized by the Washington State Supreme Court to license the state’s 30,850 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, the WSBA administers the bar admission process, including the bar exam; provides record-keeping and licensing functions; and administers the lawyer-discipline system. 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 2007-2008 president is Stanley A. Bastian, of Wenatchee. The 2007-2008 president-elect is Mark A. Johnson, of Seattle, and the immediate past-president is Ellen Conedera Dial, of Seattle. 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; 26 sections; and a Young Lawyers Division, with its many committees.

# # #