Seattle Attorneys Blog

Washington Appeals Court Upholds 54-Month Spousal Maintenance Award

April 25, 2023 | by Blair & Kim, PLLC

Washington spousal maintenance is intended to support a spouse until they are able to support themselves. The trial court’s primary consideration is the economic situations of the parties after the divorce. Courts must consider the factors set forth in RCW, but those factors are not exclusive. The factors include the financial resources of the spouse seeking maintenance, the time needed for the spouse to obtain sufficient education to find appropriate employment, the standard of living during the marriage, the length of the marriage, the age, physical condition, and financial obligations of the spouse seeking maintenance, the ability of the other spouse to meet their own needs and financial obligations in addition to those of the spouse seeking maintenance. The trial court does not have to make specific findings of fact for each of the factors. A maintenance award must be just, and a court abuses its discretion if it does not base maintenance on a fair consideration of the factors. A wife recently challenged an award of spousal maintenance, arguing the trial court abused its discretion.

According to the appeals court’s unpublished opinion, the parties each finished college with a bachelor’s degree in 1992 and got married in 1994. They moved several times and lived in multiple states before and after the marriage. They agreed the wife would stay home and care for the children, but she did teach fitness classes when she could get childcare.

The wife started experiencing health issues shortly after they moved to Arizona in 2000 or 2001, affecting her ability to work. They moved to Washington in 2006 or 2007. She eventually started teaching yoga and Pilates. She started a business offering yoga classes, massage, and certain merchandise in 2010. She cut back on teaching after having what she believed was a Transient Ischemic Attack, though she was not formally diagnosed. She closed the business center at the end of 2017 as the result of a rent increase. She was in three car accidents in the following two years, causing her constant back and hip pain, issues with balance, shoulder pain, and PTSD.

Washington Appeals Court Holds Occupant Can’t Consent to Search of Someone Else’s Bag

April 13, 2023 | by Blair & Kim, PLLC

Both the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the Washington Constitution make warrantless searches unlawful unless they meet an exception. Valid consent is an exception to the warrant requirement. When premises are shared, a person who has equal control over has the authority to consent to a search of the premises when the other person is absent. Law enforcement must, however, also obtain the consent of the other person with equal control if they are present. State v. Morse. This rule does not apply to someone who does not have common authority over the premises. A host’s consent is effective against a guest in common areas of the premises. A person with authority over the premises does not necessarily have the authority to consent to a search of everything inside the premises. A Washington criminal defendant recently challenged a search of a bag in a motel room after the room’s occupant gave consent to search.

A confidential informant informed the sheriff’s office the defendant and another man were at a motel for a drug deal. A detective detained the other man and the room’s occupant when they left the motel. The defendant was still in the room. The occupant said there were bags belonging to the defendant and the other man in the room. He gave the police written consent to search the room.

The detectives removed the defendant from the room and brought the occupant back in. The occupant acknowledged owning a bag on the bed containing drugs and paraphernalia.

Federal Due Process and Ripeness in Title IX Claim against Private College

March 30, 2023 | by Blair & Kim, PLLC

Lawsuits arising from a Title IX complaint or investigation can involve a number of complex issues. In a recent case, the Sixth Circuit considered both whether a private college’s Title IX procedures were subject to a § 1983 federal due process claim and when a Title IX claim is ripe for review.

According to the Sixth Circuit’s opinion, a student, identified in the court documents as “Jane Roe,” reported alleged sexual misconduct by the plaintiff in December 2019. Pursuant to Roe’s request, the Title IX office did not immediately inform the plaintiff of the allegations or investigate. The plaintiff was notified of the complaint by email on February 4, 2020. He alleged the college’s failure to timely investigate prevented preservation of security footage.

The plaintiff claimed he had to hire a private investigator due to the lack of information from the college. He alleged Roe told his private investigator she planned to use the informal Title IX process.

Washington Appeals Court Rejects Juvenile’s Claim of Self Defense

March 28, 2023 | by Blair & Kim, PLLC

Washington self-defense is an affirmative defense. A person may lawfully use force when they are about to be injured to prevent or try to prevent an offense against their person, when the force used is not more than necessary. RCW 9A.16.020(3). Force is necessary when there does not appear to be a reasonably effective alternative and the force used is reasonable to the lawful purpose. RCW 9A.16.010(1). A juvenile recently appealed his adjudication of guilt of second degree assault, claiming the state failed to disprove he acted in self-defense.

The appeals court’s unpublished opinion stated the juvenile got into a verbal altercation at school with another juvenile, identified by the appeals court’s opinion, as “J.S.” The juvenile called the other student a homophobic slur. J.S. filed an incident report at the office.

They had a second altercation in the courtyard later that day. The juvenile again called the other student a homophobic slur. The other student advanced toward the juvenile. The juvenile tried to walk away. The juvenile started recording on his phone. The juvenile extended his arm as the other student approached, and the other student slapped him. They both went to the ground. The other student was on top and started hitting the juvenile. The other student did not have or threaten to use a weapon, but the juvenile pulled a knife from his pocket and stabbed the other student six times in eight seconds. The juvenile had not responded by pushing or hitting back, but just stabbed the other student. The two did not really know each other and had not spoken before the altercations.

Washington Appeals Court Reverses Possession of Stolen Property Conviction

March 21, 2023 | by Blair & Kim, PLLC

To convict a defendant in a Washington criminal case, the state must prove every element of the crime, including any knowledge intent element. In a recent unpublished case, a defendant challenged whether the state had sufficiently proven he had the requisite knowledge to support a first degree possession of stolen property conviction.

The sheriff’s office got a search warrant for the defendant’s vehicle and a deputy later stopped him. They took the defendant into custody and his car was impounded. On the lanyard with the vehicle key was a key to a storage unit. Deputies obtained a warrant for that storage unit to search for stolen property. They found a John Deere GPS device and antenna with a market value between $11,000 to $11,500.

The defendant was charged with possession of stolen property in the first degree and trafficking in stolen property in the first degree, but the state dropped the trafficking charge before trial.

Washington Father to Pay Standard Child Support Despite Providing Child Care

March 16, 2023 | by Blair & Kim, PLLC

When a court enters a Washington child support order, it begins by determining the standard calculation according to RCW 26.19.020. The standard calculation is the presumptive amount owed. The court then allocates the child support between the parent’s based on their respective share of the combined monthly net income. The trial court may deviate from the standard calculation based on various factors, including income, expenses and debt, and the residential schedule. In a recent case, a father challenged a court order, arguing the trial court abused its discretion in denying his request for deviation.

The mother had been a stay-at-home mother during the marriage but got a job after the separation. The father’s gross monthly income was about $9,353.37 and the mother’s was about $3,120.

The mother petitioned for divorce. The parties subsequently signed a CR 2A agreement including a parenting plan that gave the parents equal residential time. The father would be responsible for childcare while the mother was at work during her residential time. Remaining issues would be decided by trial by affidavit.

Federal Court Denies Student Athlete’s Motion for Injunctive Relief for Reinstatement on the Team

February 27, 2023 | by Blair & Kim, PLLC

Title IX allegations can have consequences even if the student is not found responsible of sexual misconduct. In a recent case, a student sued his college after being excluded from a sports team following an allegation of sexual assault that did not result in a formal Title IX complaint or investigation.

The plaintiff was a senior student and team captain of a sports team at a Pennsylvania college. According to the court’s opinion, co-captains of the team reported a rumor the plaintiff sexually assaulted a female student to the coach. The coach reported the allegations to the college’s Title IX office. He also recommended the plaintiff step away from the team during the investigation, and the plaintiff sent an email to the team that day.

The alleged victim informed the Title IX office she did not intend to make a formal complaint. The Title IX Office decided not move forward with a formal investigation and notified the plaintiff.

Washington Appeals Court Affirms Stalking Conviction Related to Violation of a CPO

February 26, 2023 | by Blair & Kim, PLLC

Violation of a Washington civil protection order can result in serious criminal charges. A woman recently challenged her conviction for stalking and sentence for convictions for violation of a protection order, stalking, and malicious mischief.

The defendant was in a romantic relationship with a man for several years. According to the appeals court’s opinion, she made a number of allegations against him and his ex-wife after the relationship soured. The ex-boyfriend sought a protection order shortly after they broke up in 2015.

He testified the protection order did not stop her from continuing to harass him and his children. He said she kept making false allegations related to pornography. He obtained another protection order in July 2017 and a third in August 2018.

Washington Spousal Maintenance Modification

February 19, 2023 | by Blair & Kim, PLLC

An award of spousal maintenance in Washington may generally only be modified if the party seeking modification can show a substantial change of circumstances. RCW 26.09.170(1). Under Washington case law, the change must not have been within the parties’ contemplation when the decree was entered. A former wife recently challenged a trial court’s denial of modification of her spousal maintenance.

According to the appeals court’s unpublished opinion, the parties entered into a separation agreement that required the husband to pay $4,000 per month and 40% of his annual bonus as spousal maintenance for seven years, starting February 1, 2014. The terms of the agreement were incorporated into a decree of legal separation, which was ultimately converted into a decree of dissolution.

By the terms of the agreement, the payments would end in January 2021. The ex-wife moved to modify the decree in December 2020. She alleged health issues had prevented her from working in her profession as an art teacher since spring of 2019. She also alleged the ex-husband’s salary had substantially increased since the separation.

Merger Doctrine in Washington DUI Case

February 8, 2023 | by Blair & Kim, PLLC

During a Washington criminal sentencing proceeding, an offender generally cannot challenge the constitutional validity of a previous conviction. If, however, a conviction that is “constitutionally invalid on its face,” the court cannot consider it during sentencing. A Washington appeals court recently considered whether a defendant’s prior conviction was facially invalid under the merger doctrine.

The merger doctrine applies when the state has to prove the occurrence of an act that is defined as a separate crime to prove a particular degree of the charged crime. In such circumstances, the crimes “merge.” The merger doctrine does not apply if the legislature intended to allow multiple punishments.

If the legislature did not clearly intend to allow multiple punishment for the same act under different laws, the court determines its intent through application of the same evidence test, merger, and the independent purpose test.