Washington’s Supreme Court recently issued a decision in Gerlach v. The Cove Apartments, LLC, 196 Wn.2d 111, 471 P.3d 181 (2020), affirming that a plaintiff’s blood alcohol concentration (“BAC”) was only minimally relevant and excluded it pursuant to ER 403 because the plaintiff admitted intoxication.
On May 12, 2021, Governor Inslee signed into law a new anti-SLAPP law, designed to deter and prevent non-meritorious lawsuits targeted at discouraging individuals from speaking publicly or petitioning government agencies. Washington’s first-in-the-nation anti-SLAPP law took a major hit in the state Supreme Court’s 2015 decision Davis v. Cox, which declared the law’s entire enforcement provision unconstitutional.
Johnson v. State of Washington Liquor and Cannabis Board – In June 2011, Johnson, a business invitee at the defendant’s state liquor store, slipped and fell in the entryway to that store. It was wet and raining outside. The entryway to the store had an electronic door with a mat inside, meaning that those entering would walk across about five to six feet of carpet to get inside the store, in addition to the rubber mat on the outside of the entryway.
Congratulations to Kelsey Shewbert who prevailed in Robert T. Baum v. Home Depot, U.S.A., Inc. (Alaska Sup. Ct. No. 1836-July 21, 2021). This matter involved a customer who tripped on pallets in the middle of the store aisle and fell, tearing his rotator cuff.
On March 4, 2021, the Washington State Supreme Court issued its opinion in Meyers v. Ferndale School District and determined the alleged acts of negligence on the part of the school district were not too remote to be a legal cause of a student’s death.
Washington Supreme Court clarifies which parties are protect from SLAPP lawsuits. Roger Leishman, an openly gay man, was hired by the Washington Attorney General’s Office (“AGO”). Early into this employment, Leishman developed symptoms associated with a medical diagnosis of PTSD and anxiety. Leishman advised his employer of this diagnosis and its symptoms.