August 2004 Board Meetings
By Bonnie J. Glenn
The KCBA Board of Trustees met on August 4 and August 18, 2004. The following is a summary of key actions taken at those meetings. Complete minutes of this and other Board meetings are available from the KCBA office.
August 4 Board Meeting
President’s Report
President Cary reminded all trustees of our KCBA policy for trustees and endorsements. As trustees we are prohibited from endorsing candidates.
KCBA Board Approves Proposed Changes to King County Superior Court Local Rules
The Board of Trustees unanimously approved the following recommended proposed changes to the King County Superior Court Local Rules. Please see our website at www.kcba.org for a full detailed report of the recommendations by the Board:
LR 26
- Limit interrogatories to 25 (including subparts), including any pattern interrogatories; provided, that each pattern interrogatory would be counted as one interrogatory, irrespective of the number of subparts; and provided further, that a pattern interrogatory seeking identification of a party’s witnesses would be allowed to be repeated for each claim or affirmative defense being asserted by a party.
- Establish a limit of ten depositions per party, each limited to one day of seven hours; provided, that each party may take one deposition that may last up to two days of seven hours each.
- Limit requests for admission to 25; provided, that the limitation would not apply to requests for admission that are propounded for the purpose of authenticating documents.
- Allow modifications of the foregoing limits by stipulation of the parties or by the Court for good cause.
- Define as one “party” all parties with a commonality of interests.
LR 4
- Require the parties in most civil cases to file a specifically defined “early mediation plan” within 60 days after the date upon which the Confirma-tion of Service has been filed.
- Require the parties to conduct a mediation no later than 120 days prior to the discovery cutoff date specified in the Order setting the case schedule (that is, generally by the end of the first twelve months of the discovery period).
- Allow the parties to request the Court to postpone the mediation deadline for good cause.
- Provide for the creation of a pool of pro bono mediators who would agree to provide mediation services in cases in which one or more parties is unable to afford to pay a mediator.
- Exempt several categories of cases that are perceived to be inappropriate for early mediation.
The Board additionally suggests that if the Court adopts the proposed early mediation rule, the Court may wish to consider implementing the rule initially through a pilot program.
LR 33
The Board of Trustees unanimously agreed to urge the Court to adopt a new King County Superior Court Local Rule 33, under which the Court would promulgate certain pattern interrogatories. Each pattern interrogatory would be counted as one interrogatory, irrespective of the number of its subparts; and pattern interrogatories would be included within the 25-interrogatory limit, except that a pattern interrogatory seeking identification of a party’s witnesses would be allowed to be repeated for each claim or affirmative defense asserted by a party.
To the extent that pattern interrogatories would be used, it presumably would reduce the incidence of objections to interrogatories, and it also would reduce the volume of civil discovery motions that the Court would have to adjudicate.
It should be noted that although the proposal includes an initial set of “Pattern General Civil Interrogatories,” it is anticipated that additional sets of pattern interrogatories could be prepared at a later date and submitted to the court for approval to be used in specific types of cases for example, pattern interrogatories might be appropriate in motor vehicle accident cases, employment cases, family law cases, etc.
President Cary asked everyone to give a round of applause to the committee who worked very hard on these proposed rule changes. President Cary acknowledged that this is important and significant work and he will draft a letter to the court.
Guardianship & Elder Law Bylaws
The Board unanimously approved changes to the Guardianship & Elder Law Bylaws. The majority of the proposed changes were housekeeping in nature. The major change was to add the position of chair elect to the list of officers.
Drug Control - Youth Issues Report
Roger Goodman and Mark Aoki-Fordham handed out a draft of the Youth Issues Report on Drug Control and made a presentation to the board. In their report, Roger and Mark pointed out that it is prevention that works. It was pointed out that criminalizing drug use has not worked for adults or youth. Data shows that young people would be better served by rehabilitation--for a full copy of this report, please go to www.kcba. org. If you would like more detailed information please contact Roger Goodman or Mark Aoki-Fordham.
Board of Governors Report
Trustee Bonnie Glenn and Immedi-ate Past President Tom Kelly attended the Board of Governors meeting in Couer d’Alene, Idaho on July 30 and July 31. Numerous issues were covered at this BOG meeting to include Court Funding, Ethics, Professional Development, Civil and Criminal Rule changes, and the selection of ABA delegates. Bonnie and Tom submitted a written report outlining the highlights of the July meeting for Board members.
August 18 Board Meeting
Ethnic Diversity Committee Report
Dan White, Zahraa Wilkinson, and Gabe Galanda presented the Ethnic Diversity Committee Report. The Committee provided a summary of the Committee’s written recommendations on the distribution of KCBF Scholarship Funds between the University of Wash-ington and Seattle University School of Law. In addition, Zahraa Wilkinson and Gabe Galanda addressed the issue of Indian Law being placed on the Washing-ton State Bar Exam.
The Committee endorsed the Resolution regarding Indian Law on the Washington State Bar Exam and asked the Board to approve. As of August 18, 2004, over 120 WSBA members and Bar Leaders have endorsed the Resolution. The King County Board will vote on this issue on September 1, 2004. The WSBA Board of Governors will vote on this issue at its meeting in December.
President’s Report
President Elect Gary Maehara briefly discussed the IOLTA funding request and the Resolution supporting the Pro Bono Programs. The Resolution was unanimously adopted by the Board and signed by Gary Maehara on August 18, 2004.
Val Carlson was then introduced by Mr. Maehara. She then reported to the Board that the Northwest Justice Project awarded KCBA Pro Bono $90,000 to its Housing and Family Law Sections. This money will be used for the Housing Justice Project in Kent and will provide for either two half time attorneys or one full time attorney.
International Drug Policy Trends
Report made by Mark Aoki-Fordham and Roger Goodman.
Both Mark and Roger were present to summarize their three Drafts that were distributed to the Board for review. The Drafts were: 1) Protecting Our Young From the Harms of Psychoactive Drugs (08/04/04 Draft); 2) International Drug Policy Trends: Lessons Learned From Abroad (08/18/04 Draft); and 3) Resolution: State Regulation and Control of Psychoactive Drugs (08/18/04 Draft). Mark and Roger made a presentation regarding trends in International Drug Policy. Please see our website at www.kcba.org for a detailed report on these trends.
Membership Report
President Elect Gary Maehara reported that the Membership Committee met on August 17, 2004. He reported that the membership drive is ahead of last year. A second mailing went out on August 19, 2004 and a membership telethon is scheduled to take place on October 18, 19, and 20. Gary also gave an update on the RFP for Health Insurance Providers and indicated that brokers have until September 24, 2004 to return their proposals.
Young Lawyers Division Update
Brian Todd of the Young Lawyers Division reported the following:
- Indian Law Resolution was addressed in August. However, the group tabled the endorsement until September, 2004.
- The YLD is making a concerted effort to increase committee participation and to bolster their individual programs.
- YLD will place their efforts on their eight volume Practicing Manual, CLEs, and Speakers Seminar.
WSBA Board of Governors Report
Gary Maehara provided notes on the BOG meeting. Gary indicated that the development of new lawyers, may be something the KCBA YLD wants to take a look at too. Brian Todd notes that State Bar YLD has taken a position on this, and KCYLD may want to do so too. n
Bonnie J. Glenn is KCBA Secretary/Trustee. Ms. Glenn is a Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney at the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. She can be reached at (206) 296-9035 or at bonnie.glenn@metrokc.gov
