WSBA Deskbooks: Check Them Out (Literally) Free!

All titles are now available via a partnership with state law library

*Illustration © Getty/invincible bulldog*

BY KATRINA MULLIGAN

Check them out—literally! Thanks to a new partnership between the Washington State Bar Association and the Washington State Law Library, the entire catalogue of WSBA Deskbooks is available for free online lending, with an expanded number of the most popular titles.

“We surveyed members and heard clearly that Deskbooks are an important and trusted practice resource,” said Matthew Dresden, WSBA governor and co-chair of the Member Engagement Council. “People that use them, love them. And this new partnership with the Washington State Law Library promises to take Deskbooks to the next level: Not just a WSBA product but also a fantastic member benefit, and at no additional cost. To quote Ron Burgundy, it’s ‘kind of a big deal.’”

Deskbooks are by Washington practitioners for Washington practitioners. They are authored by leading legal experts to provide practice-tested, practice-focused guidance, including forms, checklists, and practical tips. They cover areas such as family law, real property, business and corporate law, litigation, and many more. Long recognized as authoritative resources on Washington law, Deskbooks have been cited in more than 250 appellate opinions.

As technology has evolved, so too has Deskbook accessibility. In recent years, the WSBA has worked with its physical book distributor, LexisNexis, to produce electronic versions of books for purchase; and the WSBA launched an annual subscription model for Deskbook titles through the legal-research platform vLex/Fastcase.

“The main reasons Deskbooks aren’t used by members—and I include myself in that number—are (1) cost and (2) lack of a Deskbook relevant to their practice area,” Dresden said. “This new partnership eliminates the first reason by putting every Deskbook just a mouse click away from every member, regardless of resources. Eliminating the second reason is a work in progress, but the dream is to commission even more Deskbooks covering even more practice areas.”

So go explore! Members will need to create a free account with the Washington State Law Library to check out eBook versions of Deskbooks via the library’s LexisNexis Digital Law Library system. Step-by-step instructions are available at www.wsba.org/deskbooks.

‘They Said Yes!’

In 2021, the WSBA’s strategic planning council began investigating options about whether and how to support a free-access model for Deskbooks after Rajeev D. Majumdar, managing partner of Whatcom Law Group and former WSBA president, began advocating for the idea.

“We are a small rural practice … so it’s not like if you want to bounce an idea off someone, you can just walk down to the next building and say, ‘Hey, Joe, I have this idea, let’s kick it around,’” Majumdar said. “We really have to think about how we get resources and practice-area expertise”—especially timely and affordable resources, he added.

Majumdar described Deskbooks as one of the WSBA’s “most noble projects, bringing together cutting-edge legal thought and case law and putting it one place.” His request kickstarted a months-long span of fiscal research and operational planning that ultimately landed with the Member Engagement Council, which surveyed and engaged with members about Deskbooks and potential distribution models. The Council then made a successful recommendation to the Board of Governors to partner with the Washington State Law Library and fund expanded access to high-use titles.

“They said YES,” Majumdar said. “I am so excited about it.” He noted that one of his firm’s newest attorneys, Alejandra Cabrales, was just the type of colleague he had in mind when he began his advocacy; and, in a perfect full-circle moment, she was one of the first to login to take advantage of the expanded Deskbook titles via the law library.

“As a new attorney, I had been limited to resources that our firm has on hand,” Cabrales said. “And I do random different areas of law. One that comes to mind, for example, is estate planning, so I am very excited.” No matter what curveballs she may encounter as she starts out, Cabrales said, she knows the Deskbook catalogue is there to help.

State Law Librarian Rob Mead along with other law librarians were instrumental in both the research and implementation phases of the new partnership, providing examples of how frequently Washingtonians turn to Deskbooks for legal guidance. In celebrating the release of the third edition of the Family Law Deskbook in 2022, the State Law Library encapsulated the spirit of the new edition—as well the overall Deskbook ethos—by calling it an amazing “mentoring resource.”

Now, thanks to this new partnership, that mentoring legacy is expanded and accessible to every member of the Washington Bar—free of charge.

Deskbooks: A Brief History

The Deskbooks have a nearly 50-year legacy as a cornerstone resource for Washington lawyers. In 1972, the WSBA’s Continuing Legal Education Committee launched the project, modeled on similar publications in California and Oregon.

The first edition, the Washington Community Property Deskbook, was published in 1977 under the editorship of Spokane County Superior Court Judge George T. Shields, with contributions from University of Washington Law Professors Harry M. Cross and John C. Huston and Washington Supreme Court Justice Robert F. Brachtenbach. The fifth edition of this Deskbook was released in March 2023.

In 1977, the WSBA appointed Edward W. “Ted” Kuhrau, a Perkins Coie partner, to edit the Washington Real Property Deskbook. Published in 1979, the two-volume set was the largest Deskbook project at the time. In his preface, Kuhrau urged the WSBA to recognize such scholarship with continuing legal education (CLE) credit—a policy later adopted, allowing contributors to earn CLE credit for authoring or editing Deskbooks.

Subsequent editions expanded significantly, reflecting both the growth of Washington law and the Deskbooks’ increasing stature. By 1997, the Real Property Deskbook spanned nine volumes and had been cited dozens of times by the Washington Supreme Court and Court of Appeals. The fifth edition of the seven-volume set is now in progress.

Other major Deskbooks followed: the Washington Appellate Practice Handbook (1980), selected by the ABA as a national model; the Washington Commercial Law Deskbook (1982); the Washington Family Law Deskbook (1989, 3d ed. 2022); the Washington Civil Procedure Deskbook (1992, 3d ed. 2014); and many others.

MORE ONLINE > For a step-by-step guide on borrowing titles free from the Washington State Law Library, visit www.wsba.org/deskbooks/explore-deskbooks.