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WSBA News and Information
The WSBA Leadership Institute is now accepting applications for 2009; applications are due September 30. Click here for information about the Institute, and click here for application instructions.
The mission of the WSBA Leadership Institute is to recruit, train, and retain Washington attorneys who have been admitted to practice for three to 10 years (in any jurisdiction) for leadership positions in the legal community and in the WSBA. Program participants (fellows) will be selected with an emphasis on diversity (racial, ethnic, gender, sexual orientation, disability, cultural, and geographic). Although diversity is the emphasis, no one will be excluded from consideration if they have been admitted to practice for three to 10 years and timely submit a completed application.
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The WSBA Civil Rights Committee invites attorneys and the public to attend its 2008 Seattle Civil Rights Conference: Opportunities, Next Steps. The conference will cover past, present, and future issues in civil rights and will include discussions of civil rights jurisprudence, federal civil rights violations, and state hate crime laws and issues. Click here for more information and online registration.
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Click here to see a brief summary of some of the bills heard by the Senate and House Judiciary Committees in the 2008 legislative session. All bills and bill reports from the 2008 legislative session may also be obtained online at www.leg.wa.gov.
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WSBA Leadership Institute Fellows Present a Credit Abuse and Predatory Lending CLE
The 2008 class of WSBA Leadership Institute fellows is pleased to present a credit abuse and predatory lending CLE as a community-service project. This CLE will be held on Friday, September 5, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., at Seattle University Law School. This CLE will review strategies for representing clients who are facing foreclosure on their home, looking to purchase a new home in this new market, or seeking debt-relief alternatives to restore their credit. Additional topics will address the legal issues associated with college loans and credit-card debt and offer relief strategies. Finally, the CLE will give practitioners the skills to assist clients facing collections and garnishment. Click here for more information. Click here to register.
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The "Voting for Judges" website is a valuable nonpartisan source of judicial-evaluation information for candidates running for judicial office. Originally developed in 2006, the site now includes information on candidates for Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, and Superior Courts throughout the state.
The WSBA is pleased to join other organizations in helping to sponsor this important source of information. We encourage you to share this website with your clients, neighbors, and friends.
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The WSBA seeks applicants for the 2009 WSBA Leadership Institute. The Leadership Institute recognizes that many lawyers, especially those from diverse backgrounds and other underrepresented groups, have not been traditionally recruited for leadership positions or made aware of opportunities for leadership training, skill development, and professional growth available through the WSBA. Approximately 12 attorneys in practice for three to 10 years will be carefully selected for the Leadership Institute's fifth class of fellows. The monthly sessions run from January to July 2009.
The program is a collaborative, experiential, and individualized curriculum that includes seven professional-development seminars. WSBA Leadership Institute fellows will benefit from the latest trends in professional leadership development; exposure to the legislative and judicial systems; interaction with high-level state and local officials and judges; and opportunities to meet high-profile attorneys from the private and public sectors. The program requires a two-year commitment. Following the completion of the first year, fellows are expected to serve on a WSBA section or committee, or bar-related activity. Fellows will earn a minimum of 30 CLE credits, and the program is provided at no charge to participants.
To be considered, applicants must: (1) complete an application with cover letter, résumé, and submit three references; (2) be an active WSBA member; (3) have practiced law in a U.S. jurisdiction for three to 10 years, i.e., any attorney who has been admitted in a U.S. jurisdiction between January 1, 1999, to December 31, 2006, meets this criterion; (4) be nominated by his/her employer, or if self-employed, by a senior lawyer or judge; and (5) provide evidence of interest in community and WSBA activities.
The deadline for applications for the 2009 Leadership Institute is 5:00 p.m., September 30, 2008. Click here for more information and application forms and instructions.
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Members of the Washington State Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) with service credit earned while serving as an elected or appointed judge or justice may be able to increase their PERS retirement benefit by purchasing a higher benefit multiplier for the service credit earned during their judicial career. Only PERS members who are not currently serving as a judge and have not started receiving their PERS monthly benefit are eligible for this program. For more information, see http://www.drs.wa.gov/Member/publications/
pers/persjudicialincrease.htm or contact the PERS Judicial Benefit Team at 360-664-7966; 800-547-6657, ext. 47966; or recep@drs.wa.gov.
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WSBA members and friends are cordially invited to attend the 2008 WSBA Annual Awards Dinner, to be held on Thursday, September 18, at the Grand Hyatt Seattle. Click here for information about the award recipients. Click here to register online.
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This year's 50-Year Member Tribute Luncheon will be held on Thursday, October 16, at the Renaissance Seattle Hotel. Click here for more information and a registration form. Click here for a list of 50-year members.
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The WSBA Board of Governors is scheduled to take action at its September 18-19 meeting in Seattle on a proposed resolution in support of equal access to civil marriage for same-sex couples. Members are invited to submit comments about this resolution to the Board of Governors in advance of the September meeting. Please send comments to marriageresolution@wsba.org.
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Click here for information on a trust-account scam that was recently reported in the media.
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Congratulations to the winners of this year's WSBA Annual Awards! President Stan Bastian will present the awards at the WSBA Annual Awards Dinner, to be held on September 18, 2008, at the Grand Hyatt Seattle Hotel. The Pro Bono Award and Norm Maleng Leadership Award were presented in June, at the Access to Justice/Bar Leaders Conference. Click here for more information about the awards. Click here for registration information.
- Award of Merit - The Honorable Gerry L. Alexander
- Award of Merit - Ronald R. Ward
- Excellence in Diversity Award - Marcine Anderson
- Excellence in Legal Journalism Award - Jack Hamann
- Lifetime Service Award - The Honorable Eugene C. Anderson
- Professionalism Award - The Honorable Ronald M. Gould
- Outstanding Judge Award - The Honorable Larry E. McKeeman
- Community Service Award - Lori K. Rath
- Angelo J. Petruss Award for Lawyers in Public Service - Jon E. Ostlund
- President's Award – to be announced
- Pro Bono Award - Gail R. Smith
- Norm Maleng Leadership Award - M. Wayne Blair
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Washington state is slated to deploy approximately 3,500 of our National Guard members to Iraq in August. Deployment places additional demands on military personnel and their families, and Washington lawyers can offer their skills to assist our citizen soldiers, their family members, and our fellow attorneys in uniformed service. A network of civilian attorney volunteers throughout the state, Attorneys Assisting Citizen-Soldiers and Families, has been formed to provide limited legal services to these individuals. For more information on how you can help, click here. Also see http://aacf.wordpress.com.
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The July issue of News Flash is available online. Click here to read it.
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2008 Legislative Bill Referrals to Sections
The 2008 Legislative Bill Referrals to Sections are now available online. Click here to view them.
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Pattern Jury Instructions: Free Public Access on Trial Basis
The Washington Pattern Jury Instruction Committee is pleased to announce that the website providing pattern jury instructions available at no charge is now up and running, and can be accessed at http://government.westlaw.com/linkedslice/default.asp?SP=WCCJI-1000. For more information, see "Pattern Jury Instructions: Free Public Access on Trial Basis," published in the April issue of Bar News.
A new chapter of pattern jury instructions has been posted online. The new chapter is on Blakely instructions, to be used for SRA sentencing proceedings that involve juries. The new chapter can be found both on Westlaw and on the new public website. Questions about the website should be directed to Rick Neidhart at Rick.Neidhardt@courts.wa.gov.
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The WSBA is pleased to provide links to county bar associations' publications. We invite all county bar associations in Washington to be included, so information can be shared, and your activities publicized, with members throughout the state. Click here to go to the County Bar Association Publications page. If you would like your publication included, please e-mail Stephanie Perry at stephaniep@wsba.org.
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Click on the links below for more information on this opportunity for service.
University of Washington School of Law's Immigrant Families Advocacy Project - ongoing
Law Clerk Committee - application deadline: November 15, 2008
Disciplinary Board - application deadline: September 11, 2008
Character and Fitness Board - application deadline: September 11, 2008
The Washington State Bar Foundation Board of Trustees - application deadline: extended to October 3, 2008
Bellevue Youth Court Seeking Volunteer Attorneys - ongoing
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The WSBA is pleased to announce the adoption of a new mission statement, guiding principles, and strategic goals for the next three years. Over recent months, the Long Range Planning Committee, chaired by Sixth-District Governor Sal Mungia, performed a systematic review of the WSBA's goals, and proposed a revised way of looking at the organization – who the WSBA is, why it exists, and where it should be spending its resources and energy. Watch for an article in the December issue of Bar News by Executive Director Paula Littlewood and Governor Sal Mungia entitled "Into the Future: New Clarity and Focus for the WSBA's Path."
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Judicial Vacancies
The Governor's Office has announced pending or possible judicial vacancies. Click here for details.
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Preadmission Education
Effective June 1, 2006, Bar applicants who have passed the bar exam, or who qualify for admission without passing the bar exam, must complete an approved four-hour Preadmission Education Program. You can meet this requirement by attending a live program, if offered in your local area, or by watching the video available on the Preadmission Education website.
Click here for more information.
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The WSBA, along with the WSBA Business Law; Labor and Employment Law; and Real Property, Probate and Trust sections, sponsors a monthly legal-affairs program on TVW, The Docket. The September 2008 episode premieres on Sunday, September 7, at 8 p.m., and will be rebroadcast throughout the month.
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A guide, Ensuring Equal Access for People with Disabilities: A Guide for Washington Courts, has been developed by the Access to Justice Board's Impediments to Access to Justice Committee. The Guide is an important compendium of laws, information, and suggestions for assuring equal access for all, and it includes suggested means of accommodation.
Click here to see the brochure that accompanies the guide.
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Help Educate the Public About the Law
Writing editorials, visiting classrooms, and presiding over mock trials are just a few ways lawyers and judges can help the public better understand the legal system. For information about public legal education volunteer opportunities and resources, see the volunteering page on the Council on Public Legal Education website.
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The "Random Acts of Professionalism" Program allows lawyers and judges to honor others in the profession whose conduct has upheld the spirit of the Creed of Professionalism.
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