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COLUMN > A Note From the WSBA Executive Director

WSBA Executive Director Terra Nevitt (top row, right) participated in the Law Day event in Kelso on May 1. *Courtesy photo*

BY TERRA NEVITT

This spring marks a high point in my tenure as the executive director of the Washington State Bar Association. We have a lofty mission—to champion justice for all, no less—and I feel closest to directly experiencing that work when I am in community with legal professionals across the state, supporting, learning about, and upholding the responsibilities of our profession. These past several months have given me the opportunity to do just that.

First, on April 24 we held an inaugural Bar Leaders Summit at the WSBA headquarters, which gathered the leaders of county and affinity bars for a day of learning and community building. Over 60 leaders joined us, from Bellingham to Vancouver and from Montesano to Clarkston. The theme of the gathering was “Building Your Bar: How to Connect & Engage in a Post-Pandemic World.” The truth is, five years since the onset of the pandemic, voluntary bar associations have still not fully recovered and, in my mind, that is a real loss to our profession. Voluntary bar associations are vital to our profession; they provide mentorship, training, community, and, perhaps most importantly, a sense of belonging.

These things are the fuel for a rewarding career¹ and a meaningful life.²

But community can be difficult to form across large and diverse groups of people (like the 42,800 legal professionals licensed by the WSBA). Voluntary bar associations, however, pull together legal professionals based on a shared geography, demographic group, or area of practice. While these are still diverse groups, to be sure, they are smaller communities united toward common goals. That can make for powerful connections and action—often directly in service to those who need legal assistance. These communities also remind us that the things we have in common can be more important than the things that divide us.

In that spirit of unity, the next major WSBA event that followed on the heels of the Bar Leaders Summit was our collective day of action on Law Day, May 1. (See pictures and coverage on page 26.) More than 1,600 legal professionals and advocates gathered at 13 events that happened at noon across the state. In small gatherings and in standing-room-only courtrooms, they came together to recommit to their professional oath to uphold the Constitution. They sent a message to all Washingtonians: The legal community stands together to commit to the promise of the rule of law in a constitutional democracy, to protect the rights and liberties of all. As the hosts of the events emphasized in their remarks, the gatherings were nonpartisan, led and attended by legal professionals across the political spectrum.

I participated in the event in Kelso, where I was honored to join hosts John McKay and Judge Marilyn Haan. I shared with those gathered about my experience growing up in Raymond, Washington—when you grow up in a small town, you learn quickly that you cannot isolate yourself among those who think like you. Everyone attends the same school, shops at the same grocery store, and has the same optometrist (my dad, as it happens). You get the chance to understand the whole person, rather than just the shallow nature of what they post on social media. That’s a good thing in my book and perhaps an antidote to the persistent and toxic division in our culture.

These Law Day swearing-in ceremonies served as the launch of the WSBA’s Rule of Law Ambassador Program. Approved by the Board of Governors in 2024, the program is meant to activate, empower, and support lawyers to engage in their own communities and fulfill their obligation, as stated in the preamble to their Rules of Professional Conduct: “A lawyer should further the public’s understanding of and confidence in the rule of law and the justice system because legal institutions in a constitutional democracy depend on popular participation and support to maintain their authority.” The promise of justice for all has been and remains a work in progress. Lawyers are essential to realizing that promise.

I am proud to be a lawyer every day, but these last few months I have felt especially proud to be part of the Washington legal community. To all of you who are boots-on-the-ground leaders in your local communities, to all of you who stood united on Law Day, to all of you who work to defend and uphold our framework of justice every day—thank you. We are all united where it matters most, in our hearts and in our values.

LEARN MORE

Become a Rule of Law Ambassador

The ambassador program includes a tool kit with daily actions you can take to engage and educate your neighbors and community members about the rule of law and, ultimately, build trust and confidence in the legal system. The tool kit is dynamic and includes a link to a recording of a CLE held in May entitled, “The Rule of Law and Constitutional Crises for Lawyer Ambassadors.”

We also plan to hold virtual ambassador drop-in sessions, where participants can meet and learn from one another about how they are connecting in their communities. Join the ambassador information list by emailing ambassadors@wsba.org and learn more at www.wsba.org/ambassadors.