When the Washington Legislature updated RCW 46.61.5055, amongst others, it made some important updates to how individuals are sentenced for DUI or Physical Control. While not comprehensive, this post will cover the substantive changes and hopefully help you understand the law a little better. First Offense / No Prior Offenses Within 7 Years If you were convicted of DUI, it...
In an 8-1 decision April 9, the Supreme Court ruled that jury duty is not traditional employment and therefore not subject to the state’s Minimum Wage Act. A copy of the opinion is online here. If you would like to see jurors paid more for their service, capped now at a paltry $10 per day, mention in to your State...
The Washington Supreme Court issued a revised order April 29 with guidelines for continued judicial branch operations during the current pandemic. In particular the order suspends all jury trials through July 6, 2020. Read the order online here or at tinyurl.com/ya3gk564.
Krista Peoples was injured in a car crash, and applied for PIP benefits through her auto insurer, USAA. When USAA eventually denied her benefits, Peoples sued. She alleged that USAA violated Washington insurance regulations when it denied bills without an individualized assessment and when a computerized review process determined that the bills exceeded a predetermined limit. USAA moved to dismiss,...
Facts The actions of the adjuster in this case are pretty egregious: Moun Keodalah was hit and injured by an uninsured motorcyclist. Investigations by both Allstate (Mr. Keodalah’s insurer) and the Seattle Police Department showed the following: That the motorcyclist was speeding between 60 – 74 m.p.h. in a 30-m.p.h. zone and had split lanes; That the bike’s excessive speed...
If you’ve read our prior post on expunging or vacating your criminal record, you learned that unless you met the stringent requirements, removing a conviction from your record was impossible. Fortunately, our legislature and governor recognized what criminal justice advocates have stated for a while – a criminal conviction can be a scarlet letter. It draws attention to your mistake...
The Washington Supreme Court recently decided Group Health Cooperative v. Coon, a highly contested case regarding the applicability of the Made Whole Doctrine. First, a brief overview of the facts. Mr. Coon developed a serious fungal infection after surgery. While it was unclear what the exact cause of the infection was, the hospital where the surgery was performed settled with...
Subrogation is a concept in law that essentially states that you cannot be paid twice for the same injury. So what does that have to do with your personal injury case? Let me explain: In the typical vehicle collision case, the injured person’s medical bills are usually paid by their car insurance (PIP), and/or their health insurance. Essentially, this counts...
There are three types of Driving While License Suspended (DWLS): Third Degree Driving While License Suspended in the Third Degree (DWLS-3) is the most common crime of driving while your license is suspended. This is misdemeanor in Washington, meaning it is punishable up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine, though it rarely results in jail time. DWLS-3...
We have noticed an increase in calls regarding people who were riding electric scooters who have been hit by motor vehicles. This often happens when the person is riding in a protected bike lane, and the vehicle driver makes a turn. It seems that the drivers simply don’t see the person on the scooter. To make yourself more visible, we...
