Welcome to the Temple of Justice Project, a joint effort of The Oyez Project and the Thomas S. Foley Institute at Washington State University to provide highlights of the history and work of the Washington State Supreme Court.
The Project has received generous support from the Berry Family Fund and the College of Liberal Arts at Washington State University. Please explore, send us feedback, and learn more About the Project.
Our annual summary of the Court’s opinions has just been released. Go to the 2011 Year In Review page for a list of the top ten cases of 2011, along with selected analyses of the Justices’ work.
Docket No. 86399-7 (from
Court of Appeals Division III Case No. 29056-5)
Synopsis: Whether the warrantless search of a car occupant’s purse incident to the occupant’s arrest outside the car is unlawful under Arizona v. Gant, 556 U.S. 332, 129 S. Ct. 1710, 173 L. Ed. 2d 435 (2009).
Docket No. 86270-2 (from
Court of Appeals Division III Case No. 28860-9)
Synopsis: Whether in a prosecution for first degree arson on the basis of fire damage to “property valued at ten thousand dollars or more with intent to collect insurance proceeds,”
RCW 9A.48.020(1)(d), the term “valued at” means the fair market value of the property or the value of the insurance coverage of the property.
Docket No. 86842-5 (from Grant Case No. 10-2-00309-2)
Synopsis: Whether records of a public hospital’s investigation of a staff physician are exempt from public disclosure as privileged peer review committee records under
RCW 4.24.250, privileged quality improvement committee records under
RCW 70.41.200, or confidential public hospital district commission deliberations concerning a physician’s medical staff privileges under
RCW 70.44.062(1).
Docket No. 85382-7 (from
Court of Appeals Division II Case No. 40909-7)
Synopsis: Whether in a medical negligence action the trial court erroneously denied discovery of a hospital’s credentialing, privileging, and personnel records as privileged quality improvement committee records under
RCW 70.41.200 and
RCW 70.41.230 without reviewing the records in camera.
Docket No. 86793-3 (from Benton Case No. 08-1-00685-2)
Synopsis: Whether Washington public policy or principles of due process are violated if the Washington Fair Labor Contractor Act requires a trial court to award statutory damages of $500 per plaintiff per violation.
Docket No. 85422-0 (from Benton Case No. 08-1-00685-2)
Synopsis: Whether for purposes of evaluating a criminal defendant’s competency to stand trial, the term “qualified expert or professional person” under
RCW 10.77.060(1)(a) requires a competency evaluator to be qualified to assess the defendant’s competency in light of the defendant’s cultural background.
Docket No. 86257-5 (from
Court of Appeals Division I Case No. 64467-0)
Synopsis: Whether the trial court in a criminal prosecution erred in allowing the State to use a peremptory challenge to exclude the only African-American potential juror after she expressed concern about the fairness of the criminal justice system toward young African-American men.
Docket No. 86535-3 (from
Court of Appeals Division I Case No. 64712-1)
Synopsis: Whether an insurer may be required to reimburse its insured for defense expenditures incurred from the date that a complaint was filed against the insured until entry of a declaratory judgment that the insurer had no duty to defend the suit.
Docket No. 201,041-5 (from WSBA Case No. #32362) Continue reading →
Docket No. 86563-9 (from
Court of Appeals Division III Case No. 29366-1)
Synopsis: Whether an employee denied a 10-minute break period required by WAC 296-126-092(4) during the first 40 hours of the employee’s work week is entitled to overtime pay for the missed break under the Washington Minimum Wage Act.