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What Happened in the 2023 Washington Legislative Session

The 105-day 2023 legislative session began on Jan. 9 and adjourned sine die on April 23. Legislators passed a two-year, $69.2 billion state operating budget providing funding increases for K-12 schools, with an emphasis on special education and programs to support affordable housing, as well as a $13.5 billion biennial transportation budget that supports improvements to the Washington State Ferry System, increases bicycle and pedestrian access to schools, and funds major highway construction projects statewide.

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The Benefits of Jumping

Hollywood is replete with stereotypes: Scientists are nerds, hackers spend their free time at raves, white men can’t jump. In the legal industry, we have a similar stereotype that established lawyers can’t jump … into a new area of law.
A tax lawyer, as the theory goes, must remain a tax lawyer for 35-plus years. A divorce lawyer, same thing. The idea being that after 10 years or so, we are stuck to our familiar, well-trodden practice areas. Something about our profession seems to create this sense that we’ll ruin everything we’ve worked so hard to build if we try something new. So the tax lawyer may indeed wish to switch to admiralty law, but doesn’t. It could be that their kids are in an expensive private school or the high monthly law school loan obligation that holds them back from making a needed change. The list of reasons why things can’t change is long, and it’s full of reasons beyond money.
Once you know something well, who wants to throw away all that knowledge? Plus, there’s the fear of losing referral sources. What of the established client base? Lawyers can spin up plenty of reasons to support the idea that, indeed, lawyers can’t jump.

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WA Legislature Special Session: A History of Drug Possession Law Following State v. Blake

In the evening of sine die of the 2023 session, April 23, the “Blake Bill”—the E2SSB 5536 conference committee proposal for replacing the expiring criminal provisions of ESB 5476 (2021)—was brought to the floor of the House and failed, an unexpected result. Much media attention has been paid to the apparent political snafu, but less attention has been paid to the history, evidence, policy options, and principles that underlay the votes taken that evening.

Gov. Jay Inslee has announced his intent to convene a special session to address this legislation, beginning May 16. Washington’s legal community has an immediate opportunity to express individual opinions to Washington’s elected decision makers about whether, and to what extent, use of criminal sanctions against people solely for drug use is consistent with the values and vision of Washington’s and the United States’ promises of justice for all.

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Court of Appeals Rules on Law Firm Trade Secrets Claim

Over the past generation, lawyers have increasingly moved from firm to firm in private practice. Most moves occur with relatively little drama and, when there are issues over points like notice to clients, WSBA Advisory Opinion 201801 (2018) and ABA Formal Opinion 99-414 (1999) offer practical guidance to law firms and departing lawyers on their obligations under the professional rules.
The Washington Court of Appeals, however, recently issued a relatively rare decision involving a trade secrets claim by a law firm against a departing lawyer. Hudson v. Ardent Law Group, PLLC, 2023 WL 2859334 (Wn. App. Apr. 10, 2023) (unpublished), involved a law firm that had a very focused practice representing clients in real estate timeshare disputes. The firm had developed tailored forms and collected a large amount of electronic data for use in handling client work. While still employed by the firm, a lawyer secretly copied the firm’s entire client database. The lawyer then left the firm to start a competitor and used the information in an effort to recruit the firm’s clients.

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The Richest Man in Town

One of the final scenes of Frank Capra’s classic “It’s a Wonderful Life” occurs when George Bailey, having been shown how truly full and blessed his life has been, is toasted by his younger brother: “A toast to my big brother George: the richest man in town.” The twist of the beloved movie is that, even in his darkest moments, George Bailey really had a wonderful life—he just didn’t realize it.
George Bailey is, of course, a fictional character. Today, however, I wish to honor a flesh-and-blood man—a man whom I was fortunate to count as a dear and treasured friend. As many attorneys in Spokane are aware, Ryan McNeice, one of the founding partners of McNeice Wheeler, PLLC, died on April 20 from cancer. Like George Bailey, Ryan had a loving wife and family, the respect and admiration of all who knew him, and a community that was positively impacted by him in more ways than can possibly be counted.

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Of Climbing and Lawyering

On the cusp of my 40s, I began toying with the idea of a midlife rejuvenation. I wasn’t shopping around for a full-on crisis or reinvention, just something to add to my repertoire of interests. I was daughter, auntie, girlfriend, and lawyer; but while I had plenty of roles, I had a striking scarcity of hobbies. It was time to take inventory of how I spent my free time and perhaps add a little spice to my days.
I needed something physical to appreciate my health while I had it, before the inevitable mobility limitations of aging showed up to the party. I tried rollerblading, mountain biking, and—for a split second—archery. None stuck.
During a trip to REI to look for inspiration, I wandered into the previously ignored section of ropes and mysteriously elfish footwear. I eavesdropped on a salesperson explain the benefits of something called a locking carabiner. She was enthusiastic and met with the same from her shoppers.
Rock climbing. I had an old boyfriend who occasionally did it. I had seen the award-winning documentary Free Solo. I knew climbing was a thing. Maybe I could make it my thing.

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DPP and Me: How the Diversity Pipeline Program Opened My New Career Path

The Diversity Pipeline Program (DPP) is an innovative legal internship and skills development program in tech, media, and telecom (TMT) law, created by members of the Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA). The program provides 1L law students from historically underrepresented communities, and who are interested in TMT law and policy, with training and internship placements in law firms, the public and private sectors, nonprofits, and trade associations. The DPP is the inspiration of Rudy Brioché, Comcast’s vice president and global policy counsel based in Washington, D.C., and a member of the executive committee of the FCBA. Comcast and the FCBA got behind the idea early and actively shaped and launched the program.

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Help Wanted: Bar News Celebrates the Volunteers Who Power the Bar

Every year, we at the state Bar put our heads together to think up new ways to spread the word about volunteering. Particularly in recent years, we have experienced both sides of what WSBA Executive Director Terra Nevitt calls the “volunteerism tug-of-war.”
“Volunteers are the backbone of our work, and they, by and large, express satisfaction from their ability to shape and guide the profession through their work with the WSBA,” Nevitt writes in the new issue of Washington State Bar News, noting that a AmeriCorps/U.S. Census survey reveals how formal volunteerism with organizations dropped 7 percentage points from 2019 to 2021. “Simultaneously, engaging new volunteers and filling our many volunteer roles has become a heavier lift in recent years.”

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Pink Slips and Green Cards: How Tech Industry Layoffs are Impacting Immigrants

Not since the dot-com bubble of the 90s has the technology sector undergone such a massive downsizing. Seemingly bulletproof tech companies like Amazon and Microsoft have collectively shed tens of thousands of jobs in recent months. For U.S. citizens, being laid off from a prestigious job in tech may present a challenge, but for the thousands of people whose employment and immigration status are fully entwined, losing a job can also mean losing a new home.

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An Unprecedented Opportunity for Cannabis: What’s Happening with Washington’s Social Equity Program

Mistakes were made. That was the assessment the state’s Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) made in 2020, eight years after Washington voters approved Initiative 502, which legalized recreational marijuana in the state; six years after the first marijuana retailers were licensed; four years after the state stopped issuing new retail licenses; and three years before the state would try to correct its mistakes.
For many, especially people of color, marijuana had for years meant incarceration, destroyed families, and uprooted lives. Today, the substance is mostly a great way to get rich without the same risk, and especially if you’re white.

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Updated Advisory Opinion on Ethical Practices of the Virtual and Hybrid Law Office

Over the last five years, many lawyers began the transition to remote work—then the pandemic added even more coal to the fire. Accelerated adoption of remote and hybrid work, however, did not mean there haven’t been questions about how to do so properly. The Committee on Professional Ethics recently released a new and improved advisory opinion which answers many questions about practicing in a remote or hybrid law office. “Ethical Practices of the Virtual or Hybrid Law Office” updates an opinion first published in 2016 and adds many topics relevant to today’s practice.

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Municipal Mayhem and More inside the March Issue of Bar News

It’s March, and for many it’s the month that only means one thing: a competition to rank the best courthouses in the state of Washington. Also, there’s some sort of sporting event.
Unlike other March-themed competitions, the WSBA’s Municipal Mayhem doesn’t take place on the court, but is a battle literally about the court(s). This battle of bureaucracy, this clash of courthouses, indeed this joust for justice will be left to WSBA members to determine, once and for all (and probably for the first time), which county hosts the courtiest courthouse. Of course, those aren’t the actual criteria upon which we will name the winner. You can find out all about the competition, how to fill out a bracket, and ways you can help your favorite courthouse shine by reading the cover story of the latest issue of Washington State Bar News.

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Timing is Everything: Motion to Withdraw With Pending Summary Judgment Denied

A recent decision by the federal court in Seattle underscored that when attempting to withdraw from litigation, timing can be critical. In 3M Company v. AIME LLC, 2023 WL 1863517 (W.D. Wash. Feb. 9, 2023) (unpublished), the defendants’ out-of-state lead attorney and their local counsel both moved to withdraw. Both cited a variety of grounds supporting their motions—many of which would ordinarily be sufficient under the “withdrawal rule,” RPC 1.16. Although many of their reasons had existed for a substantial period, the lawyers waited until the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment was pending to seek court permission to withdraw. Given the timing, the court denied their motions.

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Stressed Out? Meet Adely Ruiz, WSBA’s New Member Wellness Counselor

Recently, the WSBA Member Wellness Program grew a little larger with the addition of Clinical & Outreach Lead Adely Ruiz, MSW, LSWAIC. Ruiz comes to the WSBA via the Sound – Belltown community mental health facility, where she worked with a vulnerable low-income population. She provided cognitive behavioral therapy that included mental health diagnosis and treatment, guiding clients with harm-reduction techniques, treating substance use disorders, and providing direction on accessing medication management services.

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Supreme Court Examines Right to Counsel Involving Non-WA-Licensed Defender

The Sixth Amendment guarantees “the assistance of counsel” to criminal defendants. Most post-conviction relief cases addressing this issue focus on whether counsel was “ineffective.” On unusual facts, the Washington Supreme Court recently examined the question of whether a lawyer not licensed in Washington but actively licensed in Idaho met the Sixth Amendment’s right to counsel. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court found that the constitutional requirement was satisfied.

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Court of Appeals Addresses Receipt of Inadvertently Produced Privileged Documents

Division III of the Washington Court of Appeals in Spokane recently surveyed the duties under both the Rules of Professional Conduct and the Superior Court Civil Rules when a lawyer receives what reasonably appears to be a litigation opponent’s inadvertently produced privileged documents. Hur v. Lloyd & Williams, LLC, involved a contract dispute. In responding to the defendant’s document production request, the plaintiff produced over 1,000 pages of emails electronically. The plaintiff’s counsel redacted privileged information from the documents produced and provided a notice regarding the grounds for the redactions with the production rather than a privilege log.