Merf Ehman Receives 2003 "Passing the Torch Award" from Washington Women Lawyers

By L'Nayim Shuman-Austin

Each year, Washington Women Lawyers (WWL) selects various deserving bar leaders to receive annual awards. One of these is the WWL Passing the Torch Award. The purpose of this award is to advance Washington Women Lawyers' mission of furthering the integration of women into the legal community, promoting equal rights and opportunities for women, and preventing discrimination against women. The award also recognizes individuals for their efforts to mentor others to forward this mission. This year, I felt privileged to nominate Merf Ehman for the Passing the Torch Award. I could not think of any person who deserved it more than Merf.

Merf Ehman is a board member of the King County Chapter of Washington Women Lawyers. However, I nominated Merf for her mentoring work as director of the King County Bar Association's Housing Justice Project. She has done amazing work as a director of that program, and apparently WWL agreed. The WWL Board selected Merf to receive their 2003 Passing the Torch Award. The award was presented to her at the WWL Annual Event and dinner on September 5, 2003.

At the dinner, I explained that I first met Merf in 2000 when soon after she had been hired as the director of the Housing Justice Project. I worked for Seattle University School of Law's Access to Justice Project, and helped law students find volunteer opportunities in legal clinics. The King County Bar Association's many volunteer programs seemed a good place to start, and I found a wealth of intelligence, wit, and compassion in Merf.

Merf mentored the law students I sent to her, teaching them the ins and outs of the eviction calendar in King County Superior Court. The students had only a few minutes to prepare cases for walk-in clients and then brief the volunteer lawyers who argued the cases before the judge or sometimes negotiated with landlords' attorneys for a more optimal resolution. Merf also mentored me, and other volunteer attorneys, to take her walk-ins and longer term cases. I was amazed by her resiliency and commitment to come to court, day after day, to prepare cases for clients who had little hope of winning.

Sometimes the Housing Justice Project "won" cases for its clients, often it did not. The differences in income and ability between the landlords and the tenants was staggering, but Merf resolved to make a difference. She also worked hard to ensure that a small but important part of the legal system treated all of her clients, most of whom were low-income single women raising families, with respect and without discrimination. The legal community's perception of these women was greatly improved simply by Merf providing the women with competent legal representation in court.

This past year I jumped at the opportunity to add Merf to the board of the King County Chapter of Washington Women Lawyers. She is currently our Vice President of Judicial Affairs, and keeps the board informed about pending Washington legislation that affects women, children, and the legal profession. Merf also helped to create a section of a training manual for the Glass Ceiling Task Force, assisted in finding speakers for law school and other events, and has been available for nearly every event that KCWWL has sponsored. She has been a true asset to our board.

Merf Ehmans's entire legal career has been geared toward the promoting equal rights and opportunities for women and other minorities. While in law school at the University of New York in Buffalo, Merf was involved with a prison outreach project and received a fellowship to work on human rights issues at a women's center in Yugoslavia. Upon graduating from law school Merf received special honors for her volunteer work, and then worked for Monroe County Legal Assistance in Rochester, New York as a homelessness prevention attorney. She eventually moved to Seattle to work for Columbia Legal Services where she worked with people in state institutions and the elderly. She was then hired by KCBA. Past recipients of the Passing the Torch include Honorable Katherine Trumble (Ret.) (2002) and Honorable Betty Fletcher (2001).

Merf Ehman was very modest about receiving the Passing the Torch Award. When I told her I had nominated her, her first response was typical of her humility. She asked, "Isn't there anyone else more qualified?" She could not believe that her outstanding work made her qualified for the award, and couldn't believe that she was selected. However, all of the people who know and respect Merf, all of her clients, and all those who have been mentored by her know better. The students I sent to Merf for mentoring with the KCBA's Housing Justice Project were changed for the better. They became excited about their abilities and the opportunity to help others. Merf gave those students, the legal community, and me a gift that can never be underestimated. I know that I will never be the same. She has truly passed the torch and deserves this award.