Meet the 2026-2027 Washington State Bar Association president.
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The Case You’ve Already Won (In Your Head)
Newly published research concludes that the very process of reaching a decision can produce confidence that is not warranted by the information. The phenomenon is called predecisional information distortion.
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‘The Hard and Wonderful Stuff of Being Human’
A conversation with author and lawyer Hillary Behrman, whose short story collection Lake Effect won the Mary McCarthy Prize for Short Fiction.
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Implementation of Public Defender Standards Requires Full Professional Staff Support for Attorneys
Increased funding is also needed to hire sufficient support staff, including investigators, social workers, interpreters, and other positions.
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Lingua Franca: New WSBA Opinion on Language Access
America’s still-vibrant mosaic puts a continuing premium on language skills in many walks of life—including law practice. Recognizing the critical importance for lawyers and clients to understand each other, the WSBA earlier this year issued an advisory opinion discussing language access issues in law practice.
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Back to School
As part of the WSBA’s Rule of Law Ambassadors Program and Washington courts’ Lawyers in the Classroom program, more than 350 legal professionals signed up to connect with and visit a classroom on or around Sept. 17, with visits stretching from Spokane to Camano Island, to teach lessons on the Constitution and share their career stories with curious students.
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Beyond the Bar Number > Bryce McPartland
Get to know WSBA member Bryce McPartland. Request your own questionnaire at wabarnews@wsba.org.
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The 2026 APEX Awards
The Acknowledging Professional Excellence (APEX) Awards honor exemplary members of the legal community, including legal professionals, judges, and members of the public.
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Citing GenAI, Part II
In March 2024 when I first wrote about citing GenAI, ChatGPT was just over a year old, and we had no real rules about how, or even if, we needed to use citations to address the use of GenAI in legal writing. But now, two different legal citation guides have released rules about citing GenAI outputs.
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From Isolation to Normalization
What follows are short summaries of the findings and recommendations from each work group.
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When Good Law Produces Bad Science
The choice between legal process and scientific truth is not rare. With more and more evidence-based tools at our disposal, it is increasingly routine.
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In Conversation With The Way to Justice
A Q&A with The Way to Justice Co-Founder and Legal Director Camerina Zorrozua.
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The Class of 1976
The WSBA celebrates members with 50 years of dedicated service at the Museum of Flight.
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‘Ending Probates for Profit’: A Cannon to Kill a Mosquito
What Washington estate planning and probate practitioners need to know about the significant new revisions to Title 11.
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When AI Lies to the Court
The authors propose the Washington State Bar Association create a binding Artificial Intelligence Verification Standard under RPC 1.1 built around actual risk.
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Trademark Trouble in Aisle Five
Recently, Smucker’s sued Trader Joe’s for trademark infringement, false designation of origin, trademark dilution, and related claims.
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Rule 6 Mentor Myths: Why You Might Be More Ready Than You Think
Q&A with three Law Clerk Program tutors
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New Pathways to Practice: A Prospective Attorney’s Journey Through Oregon’s SPPE Program
For some aspiring attorneys, especially those with the responsibilities of raising a family or those facing major life disruptions, dedicated full-time bar exam study simply isn’t possible.
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Admission by Portfolio Evaluation: Core Competencies, Portfolio Requirements, and Next Steps
The proposal for the portfolio evaluation, now under consideration by the Washington Supreme Court, is outlined in this article.
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Fortifying the Record: Shielding Vulnerable Populations Through Data Privacy—SB 6081 and Beyond
SB 6081 is a targeted data privacy measure designed to protect individuals from the unauthorized disclosure of sensitive identity information within government databases.
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For the People: King County District Court Program Promotes Civic Engagement
KCDC’s Community Engagement Program aims to promote civic engagement, build trust, demystify the “black robe,” and meet the community.
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Constitutional Confusion: Washington’s Weapons-Surrender Statute
The last few years have witnessed much confusion in the trial courts about whether Washington’s weapons-surrender statute is constitutional.
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Managing Client Trust Accounts: Preventing the Most Common Compliance Failures
For many Washington lawyers, managing a client trust account (IOLTA) is one of the most anxiety-producing aspects of practice.
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Second Chances
The types of cases in which Judges for Justice involves itself often involve grisly murders that shake a community to its core—which is also how innocent people get dragged into the mess.
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Volunteer Spotlight: Q&A with Ann Guinn
Guinn is a law firm practice management consultant and has been a WSBA volunteer for more than 30 years in various roles.
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Drafting Wills and Trusts: Be Careful Naming Life Insurance Beneficiaries
It is not unusual for attorneys to use estate planning software or form documents in drafting wills and trusts as part of estate plans they prepare for their clients.
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Learning Outside the Box (Legally) in Washington State
This shift to homeschooling has created significant legal and policy implications, particularly for families and educators navigating the boundaries between home-based instruction, learning pods, child care centers, and private school regulation.
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Q&A With Rural Practice Grant Recipients
The WSBA is now accepting applications for its 2026 Rural Practice Summer Internship Grants. Application deadline is April 13, 2026.
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When Comfort Enters the Courtroom
How Washington pioneered the use of courthouse facility dogs to help victims, witnesses, and vulnerable people throughout the justice process.
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Creative Recreation: Recreational Injury Cases Present Unique Challenges
I have found that these cases require creativity, agility, preparation, and grit—the same qualities that a mountaineer may need to scale Mount Rainier or a mountain biker to navigate a black-diamond run.
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#LawTok U: How TikTok is Revolutionizing the Pathway to Practice
Rather than learning about constitutional modalities through the traditional channels of law school, many law students are instead acclimating to the legal profession through video-based digital media platforms.
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Whole Genome Sequencing at the Legal Threshold
In July 2023, Rex Heuermann was arrested and charged with seven murders between 1993 and 2010 in the Gilgo Beach serial killing case in New York. Prosecutors’ evidence against Heuermann involves a type of DNA analysis called whole genome sequencing, or WGS, that is new to the courtroom.
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Approaching Retirement Age? Go Back to Law School—in a Different Country
I quickly realized that golf, tennis, sun, and beaches were not for me. I thought about my bucket list—the things that I had thought would be interesting to do if I just had time. … My mind unavoidably strayed to law.
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What They Gave Each Other
It might seem improbable that two women, each the mother of a child catastrophically injured during birth, would not only know each other but become close enough to lean on one another during the most emotionally charged stages of their cases.
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Deceived and Deductible: The IRS Clarifies Theft-Loss Relief
In March 2025, the Internal Revenue Service eased restrictions by issuing an IRS Chief Counsel Memorandum that identified situations in which taxpayers can, once again, deduct losses sustained from theft.
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Advise, Advocate, and Empower: The U.S. Military’s Victims’ Counsel Program
VCs are military attorneys detailed to provide free legal representation to eligible victims of sexual assault, domestic violence, and sex-related crimes under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).
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Foreclosure Mediation in Transition: Key Changes for Attorneys and Community Mediators
Senate Bill (SB) 5686, passed in the 69th Legislature (2025) and signed by the governor, makes significant revisions to Washington’s Foreclosure Mediation Program and has staggered effective dates.
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2025 WNMC Public Service & Leadership Award Recipients
Displaying leadership through service, five local leaders stand out: Chelsey Butchard, Alejandra Cabrales, Austin Hellman, Eilish Villa Malone, and Lauren Romero.
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WSBA Technology Task Force Report: Key Highlights
Using the Washington Supreme Court’s Access to Justice Technology Principles as a guide, the Task Force developed a set of 10 key recommendations.
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Somewhere to Turn
The community of people with Intellectual and developmental disabilities is a diverse group with unique strengths, dreams, and ways of experiencing life. But too often they confront systems and barriers that make basic rights feel out of reach, including access to the legal system.
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The Call for Innovative Legal Service Models to Expand Access to Justice
The Entity Regulation Pilot is now taking shape: The WSBA and Practice of Law Board are finalizing application procedures, oversight mechanisms, and data protocols to support a closely supervised 10-year test.
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Restoring Faith in the Law
Attorneys take public oath on Law Day 2025 amid rising distrust
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The Impacts of Standardizing the Law Applicable to Community Associations
Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, important provisions of the Washington Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act become applicable.
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Fifty Years Since the Fall of Saigon
Melanie Nguyen and Joanne Kalas, former presidents of the Vietnamese American Bar Association of Washington, sat down to discuss families, shared history, and their pathways into the law to mark the 50th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon.
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Wellness After Grief and Loss
The demands of a legal career lead many practitioners on a never-ending quest for a healthy balance of life’s priorities.
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You’re Not Alone
Inspired by successful programs for lawyers in other states, Washington Lawyers Assisting Lawyers (WALAL) was created last year as a free and confidential assistance program.
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New Pathways to Lawyer Licensure: Part II
This article takes a closer look at—and answers some of the (many) questions asked about—the additional pathways to licensure approved in concept by the Washington Supreme Court.
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Toppling the Barriers to Success for Asian American Female Litigators
In the courtroom, where justice is the ultimate goal, deeply ingrained acceptance of many different kinds of people and advocates will lead to a more equitable justice system.
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Writing Tips From the Bench: Knowing When Less Is More
UW School of Law Professor Jeff Feldman sat down with Judge Morgan Christen of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit for a candid conversation about what makes for helpful and persuasive appellate briefs.
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Justice Unveiled
The Attorney General’s new Cold Case Unit for Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and People embarks on a grim trail for answers.
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Chasing Down a Century and Still Practicing Law
The WSBA’s two active soon-to-be centenarians reflect on their prodigious legacies and bright futures
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Rules of the Remote
Washington state courts led the country as early adopters of remote technology but we have not yet adopted statewide rules or statutes allowing its permanent use. Now is the time.
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A Short Primer for Potential Small-Town Lawyers
Thinking about swapping town for country? Take a look at the following 10 statutes practitioners find most relevant to rural practice.
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Me, Myself, and (A)I
The U.S. Copyright Office is considering the issue of copyright registration for works co-created by humans and AI.
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My So-Called Disorder
Last year, at age 65, I learned a new fact about myself. I’m autistic. It is a fact that explains nearly everything about my life and career.
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A Backward Glance: Reflecting on Family Law Practice Over the Years
The Washington Family Law Deskbook editors share some thoughts on their long careers, how the practice of family law has changed, and more.
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