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Full-Text Articles in Law
Court’S Choice Of Law Ruling Undermines Washington Community Property Law: A Critique Of Shanghai Commercial Bank V. Chang, Brian D. Hulse
Court’S Choice Of Law Ruling Undermines Washington Community Property Law: A Critique Of Shanghai Commercial Bank V. Chang, Brian D. Hulse
Seattle University Law Review
This Article deals with the issues that arise when Washington courts face the following scenario. One spouse enters into a contract without the joinder (and perhaps without the knowledge) of the other spouse. Both spouses are domiciled in Washington. The contract has contacts with one or more jurisdictions other than Washington and is generally governed as to validity and interpretation by the law of another jurisdiction. The contracting spouse defaults and the other party to the contract obtains a judgment on the contract. The court confronts a question about the property to which the plaintiff will have recourse to collect …
Policing For Profit: A Constitutional Analysis Of Washington State’S Civil Forfeiture Laws, Julia Doherty
Policing For Profit: A Constitutional Analysis Of Washington State’S Civil Forfeiture Laws, Julia Doherty
Seattle University Law Review
The summer of 2020 reignited a conversation about the relationship between race and policing in the United States. While many have taken the opportunity to scrutinize the racially discriminate components of our criminal justice system, comparable aspects of civil law must be equally scrutinized. A particular area of concern pertains to racially biased policing and the concept of “policing for profits” with Black, Indigenous, and people of color communities (BIPOC), which is accomplished mainly through civil asset forfeiture at a state and federal level.
The World Moved On Without Me: Redefining Contraband In A Technology-Driven World For Youth Detained In Washington State, Stephanie A. Lowry
The World Moved On Without Me: Redefining Contraband In A Technology-Driven World For Youth Detained In Washington State, Stephanie A. Lowry
Seattle University Law Review
If you ask a teenager in the United States to show you one of their favorite memories, they will likely show you a picture or video on their cell phone. This is because Americans, especially teenagers, love cell phones. Ninety-seven percent of all Americans own a cell phone according to a continuously updated survey by the Pew Research Center. For teenagers aged thirteen to seventeen, the number is roughly 95%. For eighteen to twenty-nine-year-olds, the number grows to 100%. On average, eight to twelve-year-old’s use roughly five and a half hours of screen media per day, in comparison to thirteen …
A Constitutional Critique On The Criminalization Of Panhandling In Washington State, Drew Sena
A Constitutional Critique On The Criminalization Of Panhandling In Washington State, Drew Sena
Seattle University Law Review
Individuals who have lost everything—their homes, jobs, and dignity—are often forced to live on the street. Those with no reasonable alternative can find themselves relying on the generosity of others just to survive. In response, citizens petition, legislatures enact, and officers enforce laws that criminalize signs of visible poverty. Municipalities have made considerable attempts to remove visible poverty from their cities by drafting legislation that disproportionately punishes people experiencing homelessness. This Note focuses on a particular subset of such legislation, laws that criminalize panhandling. Section I of this Note provides an overview of the First Amendment and the protection of …
The Home-Field Disadvantage: Tort Liability And Immunity For Paid Physicians During Disasters Within The Pacific Northwest Emergency Management Arrangement Member States, Stephen Seely
Seattle University Law Review
This Note identifies how the Pacific Northwest Emergency Management Arrangement member states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington apply tort liability and immunity to medical professionals during times of disaster. This Note also identifies an example statutory scheme that, if enacted, will provide equal protection to all physicians who provide care to disaster victims, regardless of their local or out-of-state status.
Priority Of Condominium Associations’ Assessment Liens Vis–À–Vis Mortgages: Navigating In The Super-Priority Lien Jurisdictions, Aušra Gaigalaitė
Priority Of Condominium Associations’ Assessment Liens Vis–À–Vis Mortgages: Navigating In The Super-Priority Lien Jurisdictions, Aušra Gaigalaitė
Seattle University Law Review
This Note will discuss the issues concerning laws regulating lien priority in association foreclosure sales and argue that lenders, because they are in the best position to do so, should implement proactive strategies to protect their interests in association foreclosures. Part I provides an overview of uniform law development and a history of Washington’s governing laws with a focus on recent problems relating to association lien priority. Part II presents analysis of the important court decisions applying the lien priority statute and discussion regarding current and proposed Washington law. Finally, Part III discusses potential solutions lenders should implement to balance …
"Home Rule" Vs. "Dillon's Rule" For Washington Cities, Hugh Spitzer
"Home Rule" Vs. "Dillon's Rule" For Washington Cities, Hugh Spitzer
Seattle University Law Review
This Article focuses on the tension between the late-nineteenth century “Dillon’s Rule” limiting city powers, and the “home rule” approach that gained traction in the early and mid-twentieth century. Washington’s constitution allows cities to exercise all the police powers possessed by the state government, so long as local regulations do not conflict with general laws. The constitution also vests charter cities with control over their form of government. But all city powers are subject to “general laws” adopted by the legislature. Further, judicial rulings on city powers to provide public services have fluctuated, ranging from decisions citing the “Dillon’s Rule” …
License To Discriminate: How A Washington Florist Is Making The Case For Applying Intermediary Scrutiny To Sexual Orientation, Kendra Lacour
License To Discriminate: How A Washington Florist Is Making The Case For Applying Intermediary Scrutiny To Sexual Orientation, Kendra Lacour
Seattle University Law Review
Over the past few decades, the debate over sexual orientation has risen to the forefront of civil rights issues. Though the focus has generally been on the right to marriage, peripheral issues associated with the right to marriage—and with sexual orientation generally—have become more common in recent years. As the number of states permitting same-sex marriage—along with states prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation—increases, so too does the conflict between providers of public accommodations and those seeking their services. Never is this situation more problematic than when religious beliefs are cited as the basis for denying services to …
The Confusing Standards For Discretionary Review In Washington And A Proposed Framework For Clarity, Judge Stephen Dwyer
The Confusing Standards For Discretionary Review In Washington And A Proposed Framework For Clarity, Judge Stephen Dwyer
Seattle University Law Review
It has now been more than thirty-five years since the Washington Rules of Appellate Procedure (RAP) became effective in 1976 and replaced all prior rules governing appellate procedure. One significant change that those rules made was to clearly describe and delineate a procedural mechanism for seeking interlocutory review of trial court decisions. The ultimate effect on practitioners is both obvious and unavoidable. Many lawyers, rather than stake out a clear position regarding the applicability of the various considerations governing discretionary review, simply argue that any and every consideration that is even arguably applicable is satisfied by the trial court’s determination. …
Taxing Judicial Restraint: How Washington's Supreme Court Misinterpreted Its Role And The Washington State Constitution, Nicholas Carlson
Taxing Judicial Restraint: How Washington's Supreme Court Misinterpreted Its Role And The Washington State Constitution, Nicholas Carlson
Seattle University Law Review
In the realm of constitutional interpretation, the judicial department reigns supreme. League of Education Voters v. State exemplifies the judiciary’s potential abuse of its interpretative role: The Washington Supreme Court misinterpreted its judicial function because it ignored the text of Washington State’s constitution and held a statute unconstitutional. The court, therefore, voided a statute because of judicial volition, not because Washington’s constitution demanded that outcome. This Note challenges the reasoning in League and makes a novel suggestion for Washington State constitutional analysis, an approach that may apply to other states. This Note details a new analytical framework for constitutional analysis …
Dead Wrong: Why Washington’S Deadly Weapon Criminal Sentencing Enhancement Needs “Enhancement”, James Harlan Corning
Dead Wrong: Why Washington’S Deadly Weapon Criminal Sentencing Enhancement Needs “Enhancement”, James Harlan Corning
Seattle University Law Review
This Comment confronts the difficult question of how to reformulate the deadly weapon sentencing enhancement to better align it with the policy goals of deterring and punishing armed crime. Part II explores the constitutional and practical defects in each of the three formulations of the sentencing enhancement’s armed requirement by delving into the enhancement’s legislative history and the judicial struggle to interpret it. Part III analyzes the need for a more nuanced approach to the weapon enhancement by exploring key criticisms about the enhancement’s scope and application. Part IV argues that the Washington legislature must provide courts with more rigid …
The Right To Speak, Write, And Publish Freely: State Constitutional Protection Against Private Abridgment, Justice Robert F. Utter
The Right To Speak, Write, And Publish Freely: State Constitutional Protection Against Private Abridgment, Justice Robert F. Utter
Seattle University Law Review
This Article presents an independent analysis of a fundamental aspect of the free speech provision of the Washington Declaration of Rights, which closely resembles the free speech provisions of many other state constitutions. The focus is on whether the Washington free speech provision protects Washingtonians against abridgment of their speech and press rights by private individuals and organizations. To answer this question, this Article examines the nature of state constitutions and government, the case law of other jurisdictions interpreting similar provisions, the text of the Washington provision, the origins of the provision, the historical background of the Washington Constitutional Convention, …
An Analytical View Of Recent "Lending Of Credit" Decisions In Washington State, Hugh Spitzer
An Analytical View Of Recent "Lending Of Credit" Decisions In Washington State, Hugh Spitzer
Seattle University Law Review
This Article first presents an analytic framework for assessing government actions that present possible violations of article VIII, sections 5 and 7, and then analyzes five recent cases interpreting those provisions.
The Washington Constitutional "State Action" Doctrine: A Fundamental Right To State Action, David M. Skover
The Washington Constitutional "State Action" Doctrine: A Fundamental Right To State Action, David M. Skover
Seattle University Law Review
The time is ripe to establish the nature of the Washington "state action" doctrine and its theoretical purposes, and to evaluate its capacity to serve the functions justifying its existence. This Article will perform this exegesis. This Article proposes the dismantlement of the Washington "state action" doctrine and the recognition that cases involving competing private claims of state constitutional liberties present justiciable controversies that must be decided by conscious and comprehensive judicial investigation of the merits.
Framers Intent: The Illegitimate Uses Of History, Pierre Schlag
Framers Intent: The Illegitimate Uses Of History, Pierre Schlag
Seattle University Law Review
In this Article, I will present a series of attacks on intentionalism. My efforts are aimed at eroding the high ground that the intentionalist position appears to enjoy in the interpretation of state and federal constitutions. Currently, one almost has to justify departure from the framers intent in advancing a nonconforming constitutional interpretation. This Article is an attempt to reverse this assumed burden of persuasion.
Seizing Opportunity, Searching For Theory: Article I, Section 7, George R. Nock
Seizing Opportunity, Searching For Theory: Article I, Section 7, George R. Nock
Seattle University Law Review
Washington case law dealing with searches and seizures has now reached a developmental stage from which it can proceed either haphazardly or along any of several well-defined lines. The purpose of this Article is not to provide a compendium of Washington search-and-seizure cases. Rather, the Article analyzes the more recent (and some of the earlier) cases in which the Washington Supreme Court has interpreted article I, section 7, and suggests several alternative theoretical bases for the further development of Washington constitutional search-and-seizure jurisprudence.
A Constitutional Right To An Appeal: Guarding Against Unacceptable Risks Of Erroneous Conviction, James E. Lobsenz
A Constitutional Right To An Appeal: Guarding Against Unacceptable Risks Of Erroneous Conviction, James E. Lobsenz
Seattle University Law Review
The many consequences of "constitutionalizing" the right to appeal become evident only when one answers certain underlying questions about the nature of an appeal. What are the essential elements of an appeal? Why should we view the criminal defendant's right to appeal as an element of due process of law? Part II of this Article seeks to develop a theoretical due process framework for use in deciding when the right to appeal under article I, section 22 of the Washington Constitution has been unconstitutionally abridged or denied. Part III contains an analysis of oral argument as an essential element of …
The Establishment Clause And The Free Exercise Clause Of The Washington Constitution—A Proposal To The Supreme Court, Frank J. Conklin, James M. Vaché
The Establishment Clause And The Free Exercise Clause Of The Washington Constitution—A Proposal To The Supreme Court, Frank J. Conklin, James M. Vaché
Seattle University Law Review
This Article traces the independent development in the case law interpreting the Washington Constitution and in the drafting of the document itself. It is the position of the authors that the strict approach and consequent rigorous, independent analysis by the Washington court is not a necessary or appropriate method of deciding church-state issues, at least in many contexts. When examining establishment clause issues under the state constitution, the Washington State Supreme Court should therefore modify its previous position and adopt a more common-sense approach in lieu of the doctrinaire rigidity that has characterized prior opinions.
Washington's Equal Rights Amendment: It Says What It Means And It Means What It Says, Patricia L. Proebsting
Washington's Equal Rights Amendment: It Says What It Means And It Means What It Says, Patricia L. Proebsting
Seattle University Law Review
This Comment begins with a discussion of the ERA's legislative history and the legislature's attempt to bring state statutes into compliance with the ERA upon its passage. Next, judicial interpretations of the new constitutional guarantee are compared to the interpretation of the Washington Constitution's privileges and immunities clause. Finally, the Comment compares Washington's standard of review with a similar standard used by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and argues that the Washington Supreme Court should adopt the absolute standard applied by the Pennsylvania courts.
Chemical Bank V. Washington Public Power Supply System: An Aberration In Washington's Application Of The Ultra Vires Doctrine, Grant Degginger
Chemical Bank V. Washington Public Power Supply System: An Aberration In Washington's Application Of The Ultra Vires Doctrine, Grant Degginger
Seattle University Law Review
The Washington Supreme Court erred in Chemical Bank by misapplying the distinctions between primary and secondary ultra vires that it had articulated in Edwards v. City of Renton and reaffirmed in Noel. In the interest of consistent, fair, and logical results, the court will ultimately need to retreat from the very technical interpretation of primary ultra vires that it applied in Chemical Bank. Otherwise, the court may find itself splitting hairs over the exact scope of enabling legislation when the statutes and subsequent legislative acts manifest approval of the actions taken.
Washington Title Insurers' Duty To Search And Disclose, Susan M. Stanley
Washington Title Insurers' Duty To Search And Disclose, Susan M. Stanley
Seattle University Law Review
This comment explores possible non-statutory sources of a title insurer's duty to search and disclose. After reviewing the historical background of title insurance and comparing it with other title assurance methods, this comment examines Washington case law, where the supreme court has failed to impose the duty. It then considers the need to impose and examines the theoretical bases of such a duty to search and disclose: whether it should lie in tort or in contract. Finally, this comment concludes that Washington courts should allow home buyers to sue title insurers for negligence in failing to reasonably search and disclose.
Product Liability Reform Proposals In Washington--A Public Policy Analysis, Howard E. Bundy
Product Liability Reform Proposals In Washington--A Public Policy Analysis, Howard E. Bundy
Seattle University Law Review
The current interest in statutory reform of product liability law presents a unique opportunity for the Washington Legislature to make some principled decisions in furtherance of the policies behind product liability law. The legislature, in deciding the future direction of product liability law in Washington, must look beyond polarized interests to policy considerations for guidance.