FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE       
February 27, 2006     

Contact: Alfredo Tryferis
Communications Specialist
206-733-5932; alfredot@wsba.org

Pacific County District Court Judge Douglas E. Goelz Receives WSBA Local Hero Award

Seattle, Washington, February 27,2006 — The Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) announced today that Pacific County District Court Judge Douglas E. Goelz received the WSBA's Local Hero Award, presented to lawyers who have made noteworthy contributions to their communities. The award will be presented by WSBA President S. Brooke Taylor at a luncheon in coordination with the Grays Harbor County, Pacific County, and Mason County bar associations on March 1 at Bridges Restaurant in Aberdeen.
 
Judge Goelz's dedication to the legal profession and his community is evident in the three concurrent positions he holds in Pacific County: he has been a Pacific County district judge since 1988, a superior court commissioner since 1990, and a Long Beach city attorney since 1992.
A graduate of Southern Oregon State University and Seattle University School of Law, Judge Goelz began his distinguished career in 1976 at the Pierce County Prosecutor's Office, then, from 1977 to 1979, as a partner in his own firm of Marshall and Goelz. Following a year as an associate with the firm of Estes, Damis, and Felnagle, Judge Goelz went to work for the Pacific County Prosecutor's Office from 1980 to 1988.

Judge Goelz has also been a Long Beach municipal court judge, a special assistant attorney general, a public defender, a superior court judge pro tempore, and, since 2003, a member of the District and Municipal Court Judges Association Board of Governors.

In nominating Judge Goelz for the award, Pacific County Bar Association Secretary/Treasurer Elizabeth Penoyar wrote, "[He] is a well-liked and respected attorney, community leader, and family man…"

Judge Goelz lives in Long Beach with his wife, Mary, and has two grown children, Darcey and Joseph.

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 2005-2006 president is S. Brooke Taylor, of Port Angeles, and the 2005-2006 president-elect 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; 24 sections; and a Young Lawyers Division, with its many committees.