Washington State has a large number of service members.  In fact, Katy and I have been volunteering with the Military Pro Bono Project with the American Bar Association in order to serve the men and women of Washington State that have been deployed and are in need of legal services. Serving one’s country as a service member is a tremendous responsibility and we want to ensure that every man and woman is fully prepared before deployment.  We hope the below article  provided by Nolo will aid service members in ordering their affairs before deployment.

by Melanie Cullen

Get your legal records, finances, and benefits in ship-out shape.

Deployment orders raise many personal and practical concerns. One of the most common is a desire to get things in order — and the need to do so quickly. You want to protect and care for your home and loved ones, even while away.

To help you achieve these goals, here is a checklist of important things to do before you leave.

Prepare Legal Documents

Powers of attorney. It’s a good idea to name someone to handle your bills while you’re deployed or, if you are the sole parent for minor children, name someone as a temporary guardian. Power of attorney documents can be written to grant specific powers to someone you trust (your “agent”). These powers may include paying household bills, accessing your safe deposit box, filing tax returns, renewing car registration, and providing care for minor children (even enrolling children in school and authorizing emergency medical care).

In a power of attorney document, you can specify how long the agent’s power will last — for example, one year, renewed as necessary with a field JAG (Judge Advocate General).

Will. If you own significant property, are married, or have minor children, you should prepare a will. In your will, you can name beneficiaries for your property and, if applicable, name a guardian for your children. Preparing a will doesn’t have to be complicated; for information on simple wills, see The Simple Will: No Frills, No Fuss, No Anxiety.

Review Insurance Policies

Auto insurance. Contact your car insurance agent to discuss the best coverage for your vehicle while you’re deployed. If your car will be garaged, your agent may be able to provide a rate reduction during that period.

Life insurance. Review your life insurance to make sure that the amount is adequate and that the beneficiaries still reflect your wishes. To make changes to your Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, complete the SGLI Election Form (Form SGLV 8286) available through the Department of Veterans Affairs at http://insurance.va.gov/sgliSite/forms/forms.htm.

Family medical insurance. If you have dependents, ensure that their medical coverage is in place and will continue throughout your deployment. Visit TRICARE on the web at www.tricare.osd.mil to verify coverage.

At the same time, make sure that your spouse and children have current DEERS (Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System) cards, so that they can receive medical care and make use of other benefits, such as access to the base and exchanges. To confirm DEERS enrollment, call the Defense Manpower Data Center Support Office (DSO), 800-538-9552, or update your information online at www.tricare.osd.mil/deers.

Organize Your Finances

Lower interest rates. Many credit card and mortgage companies offer reduced interest rates during deployment. Be sure to call your lender to ask whether this benefit is available to you.

Routine expenses. The easiest, most effective way to ensure that your everyday expenses are covered is to name someone you trust as your agent under a power of attorney for finances, discussed above. Even if you’re married, your spouse can more easily manage your accounts and affairs with a power of attorney in hand.

Make important records available to the person who will manage your finances. Include payment information for:

• mortgage or rent
• utilities and telephone
• insurance premiums
• credit cards
• loans
• school or childcare bills, and
• other regular expenses.

Also provide information about the financial accounts your agent should use to pay bills. Describe any access steps (including passwords) or payment arrangements (such as automatic bill-pay) that your agent needs to know.

Direct deposit. You may want to set up direct deposit so that your pay is automatically credited to your checking or savings accounts. Contact your bank or credit union to make the necessary arrangements.

Tax returns. If you will be deployed when your income tax return is due, grant your agent (under a power of attorney) the authority to file your tax return for you. Also, be sure to tell your agent the location of your tax records, both those for the current year, as well as last year’s completed return.

You may want to file for an extension for filing your federal return. However, if you are serving in a combat zone on the filing deadline, you are automatically granted a filing extension of at least 180 days.

While most states honor an automatic federal extension, some may require a separate extension request. Contact your JAG office for assistance.

Retirement accounts. If you have retirement accounts (such as an IRA, 401(k), or another employer-sponsored retirement or pension plan), review your beneficiary designations to ensure they reflect your wishes. To make changes, contact the administrator of the plan.

Did you know that you can listen to all of our blawg posts? Using Odiogo, visitors to our site can choose to listen to any of our blawg posts by simply turning on their volume and clicking on the “listen now” tab displayed at the top of every blawg post. In our continued efforts to make Olea and the law more accessible we are thrilled to be able to provide visitors with this option. If you have any comments or questions about listening to our blawg posts please email us or post a comment!

In an effort to make Olea LLP more accessible we recently added  Google Translator to our sidebar. There are many languages to choose from and we encourage users who speak a language other then English to try it out and report back to us! Also, during our research about website accessibility we came across an excellent resource by the BBC. The website “My Web My Way“ provides website users with a wealth of resources to make browsing the web easier. Specifically, the site explains the many ways users can change their own browser, computer, keyboard and mouse settings to make the web more accessible. The BBC website is an inspiration to us and we look forward to evolving the Olea website to provide our clients and visitors with a very positive and user friendly experience.

In Washington State a tenant must consent to a landlord’s reasonable request to enter the rented property (RCW 59.18.150(1)).  Under the statute the landlord may enter for the following purposes:

1. To  inspect the premises,
2. To make necessary or agreed repairs, alterations, or improvements,
3. To supply necessary or agreed services, or
4. To exhibit the dwelling unit to prospective or actual purchasers, mortgagees, tenants, workers, or contractors
5. (Fire officials may seek a search warrant if a landlord or tenant deny them access to search the premise for fire code violations.)

So that leaves it pretty much open as to why a landlord can enter the premise. However, under the same statute, a landlord may not abuse the right of access or use it to harass the tenant (RCW 59.18.150(5)).  As a general rule, unless there is an emergency, they must give at least 2 days notice that they intend to enter and when they enter they must do so at reasonable times.  When the landlord is planning on showing the home to prospective buyers or tenants they must give 1 day notice of the intent to enter at a specific time.  At the same time, a landlord may not unreasonably interfere with a tenant’s enjoyment of the home by excessively exhibiting the home.

This leaves us with two questions:

1.  What should a tenant do if a landlord is entering the property without a tenant’s consent or using their right of entry to harass the tenant?

2.  What should a landlord do if a tenant is unreasonably withholding consent to enter the property?

The answer is relatively easy in theory:

A landlord or tenant who continues to violate the rights of the tenant or landlord must be served with one written notification which lists the date(s) and time(s) of the violation(s).  In other words, a landlord or tenant must basically tell the offending person that they did not fulfill their duty as a landlord or tenant on a specific date.  If the offending behavior continues the landlord or tenant is liable for up to one hundred dollars for each violation after receipt of the notice. The prevailing landlord or tenant may recover costs of the suit or arbitration under this section, and may also recover reasonable attorneys’ fees (RCW 59.18.150(7)).  One way to make this claim is by taking the issue to small claims court where there are no attorneys.

I stumbled across this article yesterday and I completely agree with Ernie the Attorney’s premise that Google Scholar for Legal Research is a GREAT start in terms of opening up legal research to the public.  Ernie puts the issue very succinctly:

“I’ve long contended that the law should be available online for free.  Seems fitting and proper, since ‘ignorance of the law is no excuse’ and all.  If you can’t claim you didn’t know what the law is, then shouldn’t the government at least make the law available online for free?”

Like Louisiana where Ernie is writing, Washington State’s statutes are posted on a free online site. In my opinion it its a pretty good site, although there is no search function. But Google Scholar is the beginning of opening free case law searches to the public. In other words, this free search opens up interpretations of the law to the public which until now has been cloistered away in expensive databases like Westlaw and Lexis Nexis.

For more commentary on Google Scholar and how it affects lawyers and their researching check out this article on My Shingle “Free Legal Research by Google & What it Means”

Help Your Executor: Secured Places and Passwords

by Melanie Cullen

Does your executor know how to find the things you’ve hidden?

When it’s time to wind up your estate, your executor  will need to find information and items that may be hidden away or protected by passwords: everything from your electronic banking records to your email accounts, from your safe deposit box to a home alarm.

You can provide essential directions for your executor for each locked place, login, or security measure. Here are some tips to get you started.

Services and Products

Make a list of each service and product for which you have a user name and password or personal identification number (PIN). Common items include:

• computers
• Internet service providers or Web hosting services
• email accounts
• online services
• software applications
• cell phones and pagers, and
• personal digital assistants (PDAs).

For each item on your list, note your account name or number and any password or PIN that you use.

Home and Vehicle Security

List all the ways you protect your home, vehicles, or other property. Be sure to include the following:

• vehicle and home alarm systems
• home safes
• mailboxes or gates, and
• locked boxes, drawers, or cabinets.

For each item, note passwords, combinations, or the locations of keys.

Safe Deposit Boxes

If you have a safe deposit box, you’ll want to be certain that your executor knows where it is. But you should also think carefully about what you put in your box. Your executor may not have access to the box immediately after your death, so it’s usually not the best place to store information your executor will need right away, such as your wishes for burial or cremation, or your will.

When you’re comfortable with your safe deposit box arrangements, make a list of each box you currently rent. You’ll want to include the following:

• contact information for the bank or other financial institution
• a list of the people who have authorized access to the box
• the box number
• the location of the box keys, and
• a brief description of what the box contains.

Other Assets, Other Locations

Think about any other property you may have safely hidden away. What little-known arrangements should you map out for your executor? Be sure to make a list of:

• financial assets that are not stored at a financial institution
• valuable items that your survivors may not find without direction, and
• other information known only to you — such as special recipes or a map to buried treasure.

Describe each item, its location, and the location of any documents related to the item — such as appraisal records or a storage agreement.

Keeping Your Information Safe

You can keep this sensitive information away from prying eyes by making sure that only your executor and others you choose will have access to it. Store your list of protected products, services, and places in a secure location, such as a waterproof, fireproof home safe. Then be certain to tell your executor — and any other loved ones who may need the information to care for you or your property — how to get to it.

Erase sensitive information. If you make your list of passwords and other information on a computer, remember to delete the files from your hard drive when you’re finished. You can store the list on a disk or CD that you keep with the list itself.

Remember to update your information periodically, listing new protected products, services, or places, and noting any changes to existing arrangements.

For other tips on making your estate plan easier to carry out, see Practical Estate Planning: Organize Your Documents.

© 2009 Nolo

This may seem obvious, and in many ways it is, but when people are wronged rational behavior can sometimes go flying out the window.  So I am going to say it again:  For tenants to be entitled to the full protections of Washington’s Residential Landlord/Tenant Act (RLTA) their rent has to be current.  RCW 59.18.080. (Generally, RLTA covers rental agreements involving residential homes, mobile homes are governed by different rules.  Please see the following link for laws covering other types of rental agreements. )

Usually people want to stop paying rent because they feel the home has fallen into disrepair and the landlord has not fixed the problem.  The RLTA does allow for this but there are a set of very strict requirements that one must meet before rents can change or rental agreements can be terminated.  Procedure in this statute is key so you must read the statute and follow the sections step by step in order to do it right.

Notice:   A landlord must get written notice of the problem that needs to be fixed.  RCW 59.18.070 Says: “written notice to the person designated in RCW 59.18.060(11), or to the person who collects the rent, which notice shall specify the premises involved, the name of the owner, if known, and the nature of the defective condition.”

Time to Cure:  The RLTA also gives the amount of time a landlord has to fix the problem.  “The landlord shall commence remedial action after receipt of such notice by the tenant as soon as possible but not later than the following time periods, except where circumstances are beyond the landlord’s control:

(1) Not more than twenty-four hours, where the defective condition deprives the tenant of hot or cold water, heat, or electricity, or is imminently hazardous to life;

(2) Not more than seventy-two hours, where the defective condition deprives the tenant of the use of a refrigerator, range and oven, or a major plumbing fixture supplied by the landlord; and

(3) Not more than ten days in all other cases.” RCW 59.18.070

Tenant’s Choices:  RCW 50.18.090 gives a tenant’s choices if the landlord fails to fix the problem and the tenant has met all the notice requirements and given the landlord an opportunity to cure (fix) the problem.  A tenant has several choices under this statute available to them.  They may terminate the rental agreement and leave the home after giving the landlord written notice.  At that point you are not responsible for rent after the date you leave the home.  The other choices are that the tenant may bring an action in court or pursue other remedies in the RLTA (keep reading).

Many people misunderstand RCW 59.18.100 (Landlord’s failure to carry out duties – Repairs effected by tenant – Procedure – Deduction of cost from rent – Limitations.) probably because they see “deduction of cost from rent” and scan over “procedure.” Again, procedure is key.  Unfortunately the statute is fairly complicated and involves a number of requirements.  The basic gist is that a tenant must get a good faith estimate for the repair (this can be submitted with the RCW 59.18.070 Notice to cure the problem).  The amount of the repair  cannot exceed one month’s rent (This is difficult because most big repairs cost more than one month’s rent. If this is the case then the problem is indeed large and terminating the rental agreement in RCW 59.18.090(1) might make more sense or RCW 59.18.115 – see below).  If the landlord hasn’t fixed the problem then the tenant may get the damage fixed being very careful to follow the requirements on notice in RCW 59.18,100(2) and deduct the costs of the repair from the rent, not to exceed one month’s rent.

As I’m writing this it seems very complicated and it is but if you are following the statute and read it carefully giving the landlord WRITTEN notice of everything that you do and then making sure to SERVE the notice on the landlord properly according to RCW 59.18.100(1) you will set yourself up for success.

If the situation in the home is more serious and affecting the health and safety of the tenants then RCW 50.18.115 applies.  This statute has another set of specific procedural requirements involving agencies and governmental inspections etc. so you should be very certain that your situation is covered by the statute.  The requirements are as follows:

“(2)(a) If a landlord fails to fulfill any substantial obligation imposed by RCW 59.18.060 that substantially endangers or impairs the health or safety of a tenant, including (i) structural members that are of insufficient size or strength to carry imposed loads with safety, (ii) exposure of the occupants to the weather, (iii) plumbing and sanitation defects that directly expose the occupants to the risk of illness or injury, (iv) lack of water, including hot water, (v) heating or ventilation systems that are not functional or are hazardous, (vi) defective, hazardous, or missing electrical wiring or electrical service, (vii) defective or inadequate exits that increase the risk of injury to occupants, and (viii) conditions that increase the risk of fire, the tenant shall give notice in writing to the landlord, specifying the conditions, acts, omissions, or violations. Such notice shall be sent to the landlord or to the person or place where rent is normally paid.” RCW 59.18.115.

Be sure to read through the whole section before you start down this path so that you understand all the consequences.  Here, if a government agency determines that there is imminent risk to the health and safety of the tenant then the tenant may set up an escrow account to pay rent while the courts figure out how best to solve the problem (You may get this money back if the courts decide that the value of the home did not merit the amount of rent paid, but you never know).  This means that the tenant cannot stop paying rent.  In other words, there’s no such thing as a free lunch.

Foreclosures are starting to pick up around Washington.  I noticed last Friday morning at the Thurston County Court House when the foreclosure sales occur.  For the last few months the group of buyers has grown in proportion to the number of houses up for sale.

They stand outside under the awning and conduct the sales right there in the open air, auction style.  It seems obscene to me to have such a public  and irreverent sale of someone’s home.  But to be fair, there isn’t a room to spare in the courthouse and anyway, in the winter its not exactly comfortable.

I see this group gathering every Friday on my way to help out with the Housing Justice Project.  Thurston County Volunteer Legal Services organizes attorneys who help people defend against evictions. We have seen an increase in circumstances where tenants are being evicted because the landlord defaulted on the mortgage and the house has been foreclosed upon.  This is the case for approximately 40% of all foreclosures in Washington State. There are two laws which are important for renters to know about in these situations.

First, at the federal level, the Protecting Tenants Foreclosure Act of 2009 says that a tenant must have 90 days written notice before they can be evicted.  If the tenant has a lease they must be allowed to occupy the property until the end of the lease unless the purchaser intends to live in the home.  If the purchaser intends to live in the home then they must still give the tenant 90 days to move out before they can begin eviction proceedings.  Under this law the tenant must continue to pay rent to the new landlord.

Second, the Washington State Legislature passed a law this year which provides protections for tenants living in foreclosed homes.  S.B. 5810, effective July 26, 2009, requires that the tenant must have 60 days notice before the landlord can evict.  The beneficial part of this law is that the tenant is not required to pay rent, the idea being that the tenant is not likely to receive their deposit back from the old landlord.

Remember, S.B. 5810 is effective on July 26, 2009 so don’t stop paying rent if you are living in a foreclosed home and have received notice of a pending foreclosure.  If you are in this situation contact an attorney for legal advice or if you cannot afford an attorney contact CLEAR for a referral to legal services.

The pertinent part of S.B. 5810 reads:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3.  A new section is added to chapter 61.24 RCW
to read as follows:

If the trustee elects to foreclose the interest of any occupant of tenant-occupied property, upon posting a notice of trustee’s sale under RCW 61.24.040, the trustee or its authorized agent shall post in the manner required under RCW 61.24.040(1)(e) and shall mail at the same time in an envelope addressed to the “Resident of property subject to foreclosure sale” the following notice: “The foreclosure process has begun on this property, which may affect your right to continue to live in this property.  Ninety days or more after the date of this notice, this property may be sold at p. 7 ESB 5810.SL foreclosure.  If you are renting this property, the new property owner may either give you a new rental agreement or provide you with a sixty- day notice to vacate the property.  You may wish to contact a lawyer or your local legal aid or housing counseling agency to discuss any rights that you may have.”

Attention Washington residents with traffic tickets and fines!  Washington courts have extended the “Debt Reduction Program” into June.  I posted about  this program in May, or you can read more on the WA Courts Website.  Take advantage of this opportunity and contact your local court for details!

I recently attended a Continuing Legal Education (CLE) class outlining the structure of Washington’s Civil Legal Aid to Low Income people.  Here is how it breaks down in a nutshell:

1. The Aliance for Equal Justice is a network of civil legal aid groups all working on providing access to legal services to those who can’t afford them.  This is the umbrella group helping to direct people to the organization that will be the most helpful depending on a person’s problem.
2. If you live in King County then you will be directed to the King County Crisis Clinic.
3. If you live anywhere else in the state you will be directed to CLEAR (Coordinated, Legal, Advice, and Education Referral system).  You have to contact CLEAR through their hotline at 1-888-201-1014, Mon.-Fri at 9:15-12:15.  CLEAR is the filtering system which will direct you to whatever Legal Services are available in your area as long as you are eligible.
4. If you are over 60 years old you can call CLEAR*Sr. at 1-888-387-7111
5. Organizations CLEAR might put you into contact with:

• Northwest Justice Project
• Columbia Legal Services
• Self help Resources
• Center for Justice
• Northwest Immigrants Rights Project
• Volunteer Legal Service – The availability of pro bono legal services depends on where a person lives.  CLEAR is the best way to get connected with whoever is available locally.

You might be wondering why there isn’t just one organization to do all the civil legal aid in the State (I was).  There are two main reasons.  First, the structure was built as funds were available and there was no cohesive plan.  Therefore a patchwork of organizations developed over time which addressed issues as they came up.  The Aliance for Equal Justice is the response to that circumstance.

Second, much of what an orgnazation can do depends on the source of their funding.  For example, the Northwest Justice Project cannot sue the state because the state funds much of their work and that would be a conflict of interest.  However, Columbia Legal Services’ and the Center for Justice’s funding is independent of state and federal funds so those organizations may sue the state without worrying about conflicts of interest.