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THE LEGAL BRIEF
VOLUME 40, ISSUE 3
(Continued from page 6) A View from the Bench by Judge Mary Sue Wilson, Thurston County Superior Court
Of all types of court proceedings impacted in some way by Covid, our ability to conduct jury trials has been impacted the most. In response to public health recommendations, jury trials were suspended between March and July 2020, between November 2020 and March 2021, and again between December 2021 and February 2022. That amounts to almost 12 months of no jury trials! When we have conducted jury trials, our pace has been much slower than before the pandemic. Prior to March 2020, in any given week, we could hear three or four jury trials at a time. During the pandemic, we have conducted only two jury trials at a time. This is because we have only two courtrooms large enough (Main Campus 102, Chandler Court) to spread jurors out during jury selection, trial and deliberations, while maintaining compliance with social distancing requirements. Pre - pandemic, we could bring a pool of 60 - 70 jurors into the courtroom for jury selection. With six feet distancing, jury selection has been done in waves, with each group comprised of no more than 24 jurors. Since implementing the three feet distancing change in March, groups are now as large as 55, allowing us to complete jury selection for most of our trials with only one group. These changes are allowing us to pick up the pace of jury trials. With the addition of two new staff (our second Jury Administrator Kyle Fredricks, and our Covid Program Manager Jennifer Holderman), we are working to further expand our jury trial capacity and address other areas of the court ’ s Covid backlog. Our goal is to be able to conduct three Superior Court jury trials at a time by this summer. If you have questions or suggestions regarding the court ’ s approach to Covid issues, including our case backlog, feel free to email Jennifer at: Jennifer.Holderman@co.thurston.wa.us. Also, visit our website for updates on court operations. We have learned a lot in the last two years. Approaches to court operations we couldn ’ t imagine pre - Covid are now commonplace. We are excited about our continued efforts as we work to refine our operations: embracing approaches that increase access, promoting meaningful court hearings, and working through the backlog. As we continue on this journey together, we look forward to seeing you on ZOOM or in person at the courthouse. Thank you for your support, suggestions and, as always, THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE!
TCBA Half Day CLE
If you are interested in contributing a column to one of our Legal Brief Newsletters, we want to hear from you!! Funny, interesting, educational or even controversial articles written by our TCBA members are always welcome.
June 13, 2022, from 1:00 p.m. - 4:10 p.m. on Zoom
Topic: “ The Ins and Outs of Child Support: A How to Guide to Reading Paystubs and Tax Returns, Calculating Deductions, and Drafting Orders ” presented by Jennifer Johnson, Attorney and Owner of JBJ Law Group, and Deanne Swanson, Attorney and Claims Officer at the Division of Child Support.
Cost is $40 for TCBA Members and $80 for Non - TCBA Members
3 CLE credits are pending approval by the WSBA
Please register by June 12 on the TCBA website: https://thurstoncountybar.com/event/tcba - half - day - cle - on - june - 13 - 2022 - from - 1 - 410 - p - m - on - zoom/
Please submit to tcba.info@gmail.com
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