Each year on Veterans Day, we pause to honor those who have served in our armed forces. We should never forget their contributions to our safety, security, and health. Over the past year, service members have been called to the front lines of historic challenges, including management of the COVID-19 pandemic and fighting wildfires threatening communities across our state.
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On Oct. 22, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) launched ReportFraud.FTC.gov, a new consumer-friendly fraud-reporting portal. Consumers can report anything from government imposter scams to phony weight-loss claims, abusive debt collection, and deceptive auto sales, along with all sorts of unwanted phone calls, text messages, and emails. And the FTC wants to hear about them all! Please help us spread the word and keep Washingtonians safe from scams.
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Subject-matter jurisdiction—the power to decide the merits of a case—was one of the subjects of Ronald Wastewater District v. Olympic View Water & Sewer District, a Washington Supreme Court decision issued on Oct. 15.
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In the July/August issue of NWLawyer (now Bar News), Andrew Bergh pointed out in his excellent article, “Washington’s Historic Courthouses—Through the Lens: Attorney-Photographer Explores the State,” that the beautiful 1887 courthouse in Columbia County is the oldest working courthouse in the state. While Bergh gave a fascinating glimpse of Washington’s legal history, there is actually much more to the story of Washington’s true oldest courthouse.
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The pandemic has changed the landscape for many, businesses closing, individuals facing eviction, and unemployment and disproportionate impacts on communities of color. Legal professionals of all practice areas and license types can help in a variety of ways. In October, the WSBA celebrates Pro Bono Month. Even as the month comes to a close, it’s always a good time to look at ways members of the legal community can help and take action.
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Approximately every four years since 1985, the American Bar Association has published a “Profile of Legal Malpractice Claims.” Plaintiffs’ personal injury and family law are the most frequent source of claims, according to the latest profile. Although the Profile does not correlate the severity of claims by practice area, the Profile’s “anecdotal observations” section suggests that business and commercial law have traditionally been higher-risk areas on this score.
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Meet Kyle Sciuchetti: the first WSBA president from Vancouver. In the new issue of Washington State Bar News, the newly seated WSBA president introduces himself and his vision for the Bar over the next year. “Having lived most of my life in and around Washington, I see my year of service as WSBA president as […]
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Tracy Chapman recently sued Nicki Minaj for copyright infringement, after Minaj sampled part of a Chapman song. Minaj won a partial summary judgement motion on fair use grounds. A win for Nicki Minaj? Not so fast…
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The digital transformation of the legal industry went into overdrive the last few months. With in-person meetings and large gatherings canceled for the foreseeable future, networking virtually has become the norm. While networking virtually has made it easier than ever to reach out to a stranger and connect, virtual interactions can still feel awkward and unnatural.
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he death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has left the U.S. Supreme Court short-handed as it began its new term on Oct. 5 with only eight justices on the bench. The 87-yea-old was an icon for women’s rights and spent nearly three decades on the bench. But with less than 30 days until the next presidential election, the question remains whether a new Supreme Court nominee will receive a vote before November.
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Last month, the Washington Supreme Court affirmed core provisions in the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), ensuring that the law’s protections are applied early enough to prevent the unnecessary removal of Native children from their families.
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For weeks, the national discourse has been embroiled in battles over the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) and the upcoming general election. Amidst an ongoing health calamity, people in the U.S. and around the world question how America will pull off a national election not so much from the ballot box but from the mailbox. A Brief Legal History of Washington’s Vote-By-Mail System.
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Perhaps the most impactful of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s famous dissents came in a case about gender pay inequity in the workplace: Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., 550 U.S. 618 (2007). Plaintiff Lilly Ledbetter began working as a supervisor at the Goodyear Tire plant in Gadsen, Alabama, in 1979. She worked there for 19 years and for most of that time was the only woman manager.
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Recently, the Washington State Bar Association updated our Legal Directory — a searchable database of every legal professional in the state of Washington—to make it easier to use and with a few expanded features to provide additional information when you’re researching a lawyer. Read on to learn how to use the Legal Directory to find a lawyer and how to access additional resources to get connected with affordable legal help.
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Faced with a global pandemic, a massive civil rights movement, uncertain economic futures, and most recently a blanketing of smoke as much of the Western United States burns, it’s no small feat to manage three years of intensive legal study on top of that. Even so, this year, as in years past, student representatives from Washington’s three law schools have partnered with the WSBA to serve as a vital link between their classmates and (hopefully) future professional regulator. Read on to learn what’s on the minds of the 2020-2021 law school representatives.
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You might not know much about the members of the Editorial Advisory Committee (EAC), what they do to help produce this award-winning magazine, or even the thought process that guides all editorial content—until now. In the September issue of Bar News we peek behind the curtain to learn more about the EAC, the members who comprise it, and what each member’s process is for taking content from ideation to publication.
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