WINTER CLE PROGRAM
Please join us for an afternoon of dynamic CLE programming. This year's CLE program will take place at the Westin Seattle, the same venue as the Annual Dinner. CLICK HERE to register for the dinner.
Parking:
Parking is available at the hotel and nearby ramps at posted rates.
CLE Credits:
3.75 Credits applied for in Washington
Attendance:
In Person - Westin Seattle
Remote via Zoom (you will receive the link as we get closer to the date)
AGENDA
1:00pm-2:30pm
Ethical Considerations of Problem-Solving Courts
1.5 Ethics CLE pending
Problem-solving courts bring judges, prosecutors, defense counsel, and probation officers together as a team focused on a participant’s recovery and successful reentry. That collaborative model produces meaningful results, but also can raise ethical questions that attorneys should be prepared to address. This panel brings together a judge who founded and has presided over the District of Connecticut’s Support Court since 2009, a federal defender who has served on its team, and a clinician with lived experience of the federal system. Drawing on their shared commitment to these programs, they will examine these considerations and offer practical guidance for representing clients within them.
Moderator
Colleen P. Fitzharris, Office of the Federal Public Defender for the Western District of Washington
Panelists
Senior U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill, District of Connecticut
Kelly M. Barrett, National Federal Defender Organization
Dan Varley, Clinical Psychiatric Therapist, Yale School of Medicine
2:45pm-3:30pm
Consenting + Settlement Conferences
0.75 Law & Legal CLE pending
Magistrate judges in the Western District of Washington play a central role in both civil and criminal practice. With the parties’ consent, they can also preside over a civil case from start to finish, with appeals going directly to the Ninth Circuit. This session will explain how consent works in this district and why it can benefit parties and counsel. The panelists will also discuss how magistrate judges conduct judicial settlement conferences and the advantages that process can offer to both sides.
Panelists
U.S. Magistrate Judge Brian A. Tsuchida, Western District of Washington
U.S. Magistrate Judge Michelle L. Peterson, Western District of Washington
3:30pm-5:00pm
Attorney General-led Litigation in Federal Court
1.5 Law & Legal CLE pending
This session offers an inside look at how the Washington State Office of the Attorney General brings and litigates cases in federal court, much of it in the Western District of Washington. The discussion will cover the strategic and procedural considerations that shape this work, from building a case through emergency motions and appeals.
Panelist
Lauryn K. Fraas, Washington State Office of the Attorney General
