In the past few months, local media outlets have reported on increases in speeding This includes reports of increases in people driving excessively fast, organized street racing, and the like.

All boat owners and operators should take time re-familiarize themselves with the necessary operational and safety rules. Although they can be a ton of fun, boats and PWC’s can also cause serious injuries when used unsafely, a fact borne out by the many boating injuries and fatalities that occur every year.

Safety is a global issue right now and although we must stay distanced from each other to remain safe, it is more important than ever that we pull together in the sense that we all try to conduct ourselves in a way that benefits the community and the greater good. A great place to start is out on the road.

This Fourth of July, in light of the ongoing impacts of COVID-19, most all community celebrations have been cancelled. Because there are no community events, many of us will turn to private parties to celebrate. Here's how to pull it off safely.

Specifically, as of early May Washington state allows restaurants with liquor licenses to serve pre-mixed cocktails to-go while restrictions on in-house dining continue. The rules are laid out in a May 6, 2020 Liquor Control Board bulletin. In order to sell such drinks, they must be purchased with a meal, and packaged in a container with a secure lid and in a manner designed to prevent consumption without removal of the lid or cap (think mason jar). Drinks having lids with holes (think coffee cups, straw holes) are not permissible for sale, nor are Styrofoam and plastic cups, even if sealed with tape or other materials. As the situation relates to “open container” laws for the driver and occupants of the vehicle, the rules promulgated by the liquor control board say that the open container laws (found at RCW 46.61.510) still apply. These drinks may not be consumed in the vehicle, or transported in any place but the trunk. When there is no trunk, the drinks must be kept in another area of the vehicle not normally occupied by the driver or passengers (this does not include a utility or glove compartment, but may include underneath a seat outside the driver’s reach).

There are often times that I marvel at just how many ways there are to get creative in what we do as personal injury attorneys. Whether it is a matter of figuring out ways to help a jury visualize the incident, to find additional insurance to help compensate an injured person, to really flush out and properly investigate the facts and circumstances of a claim, in determining which potential parties should or should not be reimbursed and under what circumstances in trying to maximize the recovery in our clients’ pockets...

There have been multiple instances when I was walking in my neighborhood, obeying all laws, and cars and trucks have “snuck up” on me. I never had this problem simply talking on the phone or using my regular, non-noise-cancelling headphones on a walk. There have been no near-misses yet, but it still got me thinking: am I being negligent by using noise-cancelling headphones on a walk?

As tired as everyone feels from talking about coronavirus, I have to recognize one good thing to come in its wake—and make no mistake, there was very little silver lining to come out of the pandemic. Every time I left my house, rain or shine, I felt a sense of community. People were on walks, riding bikes, and in their yards. They were out in the community. People were making conversation. There was, at times, a wonderful nostalgic feel to it all.

The month of May was Teen Driving Awareness month. As a former teen driver who recalls at least a couple of dangerous situations where I was driving and now as a personal injury attorney who sees that the at-fault driver who caused a car crash often seems to be a person in their teens... I do not find it surprising when the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has a headline on their ‘Teen Driving’ page that reads “Crashes Are Still the Leading Cause of Teen Deaths”.

While most all of us understand the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol, many—especially young people—are unaware that driving under the influence of marijuana is also dangerous.

Something I could not have fully understood before we had our first son in June 2018 was how many ways in which my worldview would be affected by that occurrence. Inevitably, as I spend the majority of my waking hours at work and representing injured people in negligence cases, my approach to and understanding of what I do has changed.

Clark County District Court and the Clark County Bar Association (CCBA) provided an informational presentation for the benefit of attorneys to bring us up to speed on court operations. Judges Kelli Osler and Kristen Parcher conducted the session on May 15, 2020 as a Zoom chat.

Clark County Superior Court and the Clark County Bar Association (CCBA) provided an informational chat for the benefit of attorneys to bring us up to speed on court operations in these troubled times. Judge John Fairgrieve conducted the session on May 14, 2020 as a Zoom chat.

Washington state’s governor Jay Inslee signed a bill into law on March 18, 2020, which would increase from 10 to 11 the number of Clark County Superior Court judges.

It’s been my observation that during the COVID-19 pandemic we have been for the most part able to continue to vigorously pursue our clients’ cases with success. The one exception seems to be jury trials, which due to statewide and federal court orders may not be available for quite some time yet. We will try and keep this blog current with information about our local courts’ operations, but as of now local courts are operating in a very limited manner.

After a brief flurry of deposition rescheduling at the start of all this while the entire profession was trying to figure out what to do, we have been for the most part able to continue to vigorously pursue our clients' cases with success.

There have been several occasions over my career handling personal injury cases where I've had a client ask me, “is it bad for my case if I go back to work?” In none of those cases do I recall thinking the client really didn't want to go back to work after they had recovered (usually only partial...

Since January 1, 2020, Oregon cyclists have been permitted by law to treat a stop sign or a flashing red light at an intersection as a yield sign.  The playful term for this approach is an “Idaho stop”, because it first became law in Idaho in 1982.  A solid red light at an intersection stil...

As a lifelong resident of the Pacific Northwest, I was always confused by the road signs that say “Slippery When Wet“. It rains just about year-round. But there are definitely times and that warning should be minded. The first rain after a dry spell comes immediately to mind. If it seems li...

I currently have several cases in which my client was injured by a drunk driver. In these instances we frequently bring a case not only against the drunk driver, but also against the establishment that served too much alcohol to the driver. I'm always amazed at the level of intoxication with wh...

One thing I love about my job is that I'm learning new things about the law all the time. In a recent case I was involved in I encountered the question of how can an injured person can prove that a defective product caused their injuries, when the product itself is destroyed in the event, a...

According to the Washington State Department of Transportation (“WSDOT”) and The Columbian newspaper, a project placing a concrete barrier at the center of state Highway 503 has been in development for some time and is aimed at eliminating crossover crashes and reducing the risk of left-turn cras...