FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 28, 2006

Contact Dené Canter
Member and Community Relations Department
206-727-8213
denec@wsba.org

Wenatchee Lawyer John M. Brangwin Sworn In as 2006-2007 President of Washington State Bar Association's Young Lawyers Division

Seattle, Washington, September 26, 2006 — The Washington State Bar Association announced today that Wenatchee lawyer John M. Brangwin is the new president of the WSBA's Young Lawyers Division.

Mr. Brangwin received his law degree from Gonzaga University. After law school, he went to work for the Bell Law Office (formerly Bell & Safar) in Wenatchee. In 2002 he formed the Wenatchee law firm of Woods & Brangwin with University of Washington Law School alumnus Steven W. Woods.

Mr. Brangwin primarily focuses on defending persons charged with offenses, particularly traffic offenses from DUI to vehicular homicide. His practice also includes workers' compensation and plaintiffs PI. He is a member of the National College for DUI Defense, and certified in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Standardized Field Sobriety Tests.

A member of the WSBA since 1997, Mr. Brangwin is active in legal and community affairs. He is a member of the Washington State Trial Lawyers Association and the Washington Defender Association. Mr. Brangwin is also active in the Wenatchee Downtown Kiwanis Club and chairs its Revitalization of Methow Park Committee. In January 2006, he was recognized by his peers as a Rising Star by Washington Law & Politics magazine.

As WYLD president, Mr. Brangwin envisions leading the WYLD to focus on member service by assisting young lawyers with professional marketing techniques and continue its current membership and public-service activities and programs. Mr. Brangwin also hopes to address student-loan debt, which he sees as the primary challenge facing young lawyers today.

About the WYLD
The WYLD provides programs and services of special interest to young lawyers, the public, and those denied access to the justice system. In particular, the WYLD sponsors continuing legal-education seminars of interest to young lawyers; publishes De Novo, a bimonthly publication serving young lawyers; sponsors programs that benefit high-school students, including the YMCA Mock Trial Competition; as well as a variety of seminars addressing issues facing young lawyers.

Any active member of the WSBA is a member of the WYLD until December 31 of the year in which the member attains the age of 36 or until December 31 of the fifth year in which the member has been admitted to practice in any state, whichever is later.

About the WSBA
The WSBA is part of the judicial branch, exercising a governmental function authorized by the Washington State Supreme Court to license the state's 29,800 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 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 2006-2007 president is Ellen Conedera Dial, of Seattle, and the 2006-2007 president-elect is Stanley A. Bastian, of Wenatchee.

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.

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