Access to Justice
Board
Mission
The Access to Justice (ATJ) Board was established by the Washington State Supreme Court in 1994 at the request of the Washington State Bar Association Board of Governors in response to a growing need to coordinate the access to justice efforts in Washington State to provide continuity and focus.
Its mission is to promote and facilitate equal access to justice in Washington State for low and moderate income people through high quality legal services. In carrying out its goals and objectives, the ATJ Board is guided by the enabling Order of the Washington State Supreme Court, the Hallmarks of an Effective Statewide Legal Services Delivery System, and the ATJ Board's Statement of Principles and Goals .
In addition to providing leadership on issues facing the delivery of
civil legal services, the ATJ Board oversees the implementation of its
Revised Plan for the Delivery
of Civil Legal Services to Low Income People in Washington State (State
Plan), oversees the work of its 14 committees, ensures that the annual
Access to Justice Conference Recommendations
are implemented, and coordinates closely with the work of the Washington
State Bar Association's Pro Bono and Legal Aid Committee on its implementation
of the Volunteer Attorney Legal
Services Action Plan (VALS) Plan and the Council on Public Legal Education
. See also Washington State Plan Background information.
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Background
The ATJ Board resulted from years of effort by members of Washington's
legal community. Reports in the mid-1980's by two Washington State Bar
Association (WSBA) pro bono task forces and the WSBA's Legal Aid Committee
documented the massive growing needs. The WSBA's 1989-1990 Long-Range
Planning Committee, chaired by William H. Gates, in turn identified access
to justice as the number-one issue facing the WSBA and sounded the alarm
that the system as we know it would break down unless the legal needs
of all people are addressed. Successive WSBA presidents Joe Delay and
Steve DeForest carried that message to the WSBA Board of Governors, that
established WSBA's 1992-93 Access
to Justice Task Force, chaired by then WSBA Governor Tom Chambers.
It spent a year developing proposed solutions to the lack continuity,
coordination and organization in the delivery of existing services and
ultimately recommended the creation of the ATJ Board, and autonomous body
operating under the auspices of the WSBA in accordance with authority
granted by the Supreme Court. The Washington State Supreme Court established
the ATJ Board in 1994 by Court Order for a two-year
evaluation period. The Court reauthorized the ATJ
Board in November 1996 for an additional five years. On November 3, 2000
the Supreme Court reauthorized the Access
to Justice Board, making it permanent.
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Members
The ATJ Board has nine
members nominated by the WSBA Board of Governors and appointed by the
Supreme Court. Five positions represent specific groups involved with
civil legal services. The remaining four members are individuals with a
demonstrated commitment to, and familiarity with, access to justice
issues. Current members are:
Scott Smith,
Chair
Hon. Rebecca
Baker
(At-large member)
Christine Allen
Crowell
(At-large member)
Julian (Pete)
Dewell
(Representing the Washington State Bar Association Board of Governors)
Pamela
Feinstein
(Representing pro bono programs)
Richard
Kuhling
(At-large member)
Michele Jones
(Representing State and/or Federally funded Legal Services Programs)
Hon. Gregory
Tripp
(Representing the Board for Judicial Administration)
Dwight Williams
(Representing the Legal Foundation of Washington)
The ATJ Board reports to the
Washington State Supreme Court and the WSBA Board of Governors every six
months. The ATJ Board meets approximately seven times per year. Board
meetings are open and
Minutes from
the ATJ Board meetings for the past 12 months are available on this site.
Please contact staff if you would like to see archived meeting minutes.
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Access to Justice
Board Committees and Chairs
More detailed information can be found in the ATJ Board's reports to the
Washington State Supreme Court and the Washington State Bar Association
Board of Governors.
Access to
Justice Conference
Planning
Colleen Kinerk, Chair
Access to
Justice Technology Bill of Rights
Donald Horowitz, Chair
Communications
Michele Jones, Chair
Education
Hon. James Murphy, Chair
Equal Justice
Coalition
M.
Wayne Blair, Chair
Greater Access and
Assistance Project
(GAAP)
Mark Kim,
Chair
(joint committee with Washington Young Lawyers Division)
Impediments
to Access to
Justice
Hon. Anne Ellington and Howard Graham, Co-Chairs
Jurisprudence
of Access to
Justice
Patrick McIntyre, Chair
Media
Ruth Walsh McIntyre and Hugh Spitzer,
Co-Chairs
(joint committee with Council on Public Legal Education)
Resource
Development
Greg Dallaire, Chair
Technology
Steve Burnett, Chair
Interim Committees:
Courthouse
Facilitator
Michele Jones, Chair
Family Law Committee
Hon. Paul Bastine, Chair
Law-Related
Services
Hon. T.W. Small and Scott Smith, Co-Chairs
Unbundled Legal Services
Barrie Althoff, Chair
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