Local judges have taken the lead in developing and improving programs to address the increasingly crowded dockets of nonviolent drug offenders. These efforts need to be enhanced. Another example is family law. Few areas of law are changing as rapidly as those that affect families. Because of shifting attitudes and new realities, the cases coming before probate, juvenile and domestic relations judges are far different and more complex than those of a decade ago.
Some parents feel they have lost control of their children.
We need to simplify the family law system, making it easier for those families in distress to understand and navigate the legal waters. Better communication and coordination among courts, judges and lawyers are achievable goals. I ask you, as members of the WSBA, to support these and other changes to make our legal system more responsive and fair to all who come before it. I also ask you to be ever mindful of the one over-arching reality upon which rests all of our ideals about trust, confidence and justice. As lawyers and judges, we are and must be held to higher standards.