On May 6, the King County Bar Association hosted a swearing-in ceremony with 42 new attorneys and three limited practice officers participating. The King County Superior Court room was full of friends and family celebrating the new admittees’ achievement alongside Presiding Judge Averil Rothrock.
 

This month we are focusing on places we have passed by, in many cases for years, often intending to try them out someday. Well, now is our time to do so. Set near the intersection of Cedar, Denny, 5th and the Monorail, it is hard to have not walked or driven by The 5 Point Café, 415 Cedar Street, 206.448.9991, , one of Seattle’s comparatively few 24 hour options. 

Team-building is an important part of leadership. In any workplace, we must trust each other, communicate effectively and share responsibility for collective outcomes. All members of the team deserve recognition for their contributions and effort to achieve mutual goals. Progress depends on productive relationships between coworkers and colleagues. And, having a positive workplace environment is important to work satisfaction and retention of valuable team members.Thus, we neglect team building at our peril. As leaders, we need to devote time and attention to team building, communicate its value and model the behaviors that will lead to future success.

The Board of Trustees convened on Mar. 18, 2026, with President Sidney Tribe presiding. Trustees, officers, staff, and guests received updates on the following:

May is a month that naturally invites movement and growth as the world comes alive with the energy of spring. Getting outside, staying active, and enjoying the beauty of nature is part of this season. Just as flowers bloom and trees grow stronger, May reminds us that personal (and professional) growth takes time, consistency, and care, making it a great moment to nurture both ourselves and the world around us.

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Do you remember why you wanted to become an attorney? Well, I would like to share a story; it is a beautiful one at that. And I think it may remind some of us why we chose this profession.

A cheerful Seattleite, bursting with energy at 69 years young, recently came to the Records Project hoping to finally put his past behind him. His past reflects many encounters with the criminal legal system, several convictions, all non-violent and tied to a years-long struggle with substance use disorder that dates back to the late 1970s. He has been sober since completing a King County recovery program some 17 years ago. His life, by every measure, has changed completely.

The King County Bar celebrated its annual Bar Scholars Reception on April 8, 2026, honoring 2025–26 minority law students supported by scholarships. More than 50 scholars joined faculty from Seattle University and the University of Washington, along with Bar leaders, to recognize achievement and promote connections. Student speakers shared personal journeys to law school, emphasizing how scholarships helped overcome barriers such as first-generation status, language challenges, and financial hardship. Since 1970, the Bar has awarded more than $3.25 million to underrepresented students, strengthening diversity in the legal profession. The event also emphasized mentorship, networking, and appreciation for supporters, community impact.

One of the first things that struck me when I started working with pro se litigants at KCLL was that many folks were operating in a vacuum with no real sense of how the litigation process works or why. It occurred to me that pro ses could really use an introductory civil procedure class. To that end, the law library joined forces with fabulous volunteer attorney Jeff Cowan in 2018 to create the class, Civil Litigation without Tears: The Basics of Representing Yourself in Court. While the class might be more accurately called Civil Litigation with Fewer Tears, it was a 90-minute dive into the court rules, deadlines, and procedures that pro ses are most likely to encounter.

Eric Gillett examines how lawyers should handle mediation when the opposing party refuses to move from an opening position. Drawing on personal experience, he argues that immobility is usually strategic rather than personal, driven by authority limits, precedent concerns, or signaling. The article offers a step-by-step playbook: avoid emotional reactions, stop unilateral concessions, reframe offers as information, shift discussions away from numbers, use conditional movement, and let mediators apply pressure. Gillett emphasizes knowing when to walk away, noting that disciplined patience often preserves leverage and leads to later settlement on better terms.