"Always Appealing"

"Always Appealing" is a monthly column, published in the King County Bar Bulletin, addressing current issues in appellate practice and recent appellate cases written by the lawyers of Smith Goodfriend, P.S.

2025 Archive

• April 2025: Do the RAPs Need to be Updated to Account for “Zoom Court?" (Nicholas Bartels)
• March 2025: A SCOWA Spring Preview When Should Appellate Courts Review a Multifactor Legal Test Decided on Summary Judgment for an Abuse of Discretion? (Jonathan Collins)
• February 2025: Attorney Fees in Family Law Appeals (Valerie Villacin)
• January 2025: Notes from the Persuasive Writing Factory (Catherine Smith)

2024 Archive

• December 2024: Five Things I Wish Law School Had Taught Me About Appellate Practice (Nicholas Bartels)
• November 2024: Recent Trends in Discretionary Review: I Reviewed Two Years of Commissioner Rulings so You Don’t Have To (Jonathan Collins)
• October 2024: Washington Supreme Court Divides on Balancing Finality and Error Correction (Ian Cairns)
• September 2024: “Justice Delayed is Justice Denied.” If That Sounds Good, Check Out the Rules of Appellate Procedure. (Howard Goodfriend)
• August 2024: "Activating” RAP 18.9—Conditioning Appeals on Compliance with Valid Orders (Catherine Smith)
• July 2024: Frivolous Appeals: What’s Good for the Goose Is Good for the Gander (Valerie Villacin)
• June 2024: Motions for Reconsideration in the Washington Court of Appeals (Ian Cairns)
• May 2024: Whose Division Is It Anyway? (Jonathan Collins)
• April 2024: Court of Appeals to Superior Court: “Make a Decision!” (Howard Goodfriend)
• March 2024: When RAPs and Statutes Collide... (Valerie Villacin)
• January 2024: That Time I Met Justice O’Connor (Catherine Smith)

2023 Archive

• December 2023: Our Unsung Appellate Hero — RAP 17.6(b) (Ian Cairns)
• November 2023: Dot Your I’s and Cross Your Appeals (Jonathan Collins)
• October 2023: Supremes to CoA: Don’t Make Stuff Up (Howard Goodfriend)
• September 2023: RAP 17.7 (Catherine Smith)
• August 2023: Arbitration Provisions in Family Law CR2A Agreements, a Cautionary Tale (Valerie Villacin)
• July 2023: Once Again Glad to Be Last on the Calendar (Catherine Smith)
• June 2023: Washington’s Supreme Court Again Emphasizes Our State’s Policy of Deciding Cases on Their Merits (Ian Cairns)
• May 2023: The Washington Supreme Court’s Shrinking Docket (Howard Goodfriend)
• April 2023: The Pro Se Appellant (Valerie Villacin)
• March 2023: NO SUPP(lemental Briefing) FOR YOU: Why the Supreme Court Should Clarify the Purpose of Additional Authorities Under RAP 10.8. (Jonathan Collins)
• February 2023: Suit Money: A Cure For The Bully Appeal? (Catherine Smith)
• January 2023: Supreme Court Stays Order Invalidating Capital Gains Tax (Howard Goodfriend)

2022 Archive

• November 2022: Shifting Baselines (Catherine Smith)
• September 2022: The Respondent Who Knows Too Much (Howard Goodfriend)
• August 2022: Supreme Court Provides Insight on the Standard for Interlocutory Review Under RAP 2.3(B)(2) (Valerie Villacin)
• July 2022: Would Releasing Draft Opinions Make Oral Argument Better? (Jonathan Collins)
• June 2022: Courts Should Focus on the “Notice” in Notice of Appeal (Ian Cairns)
• April 2022: Disqualification of Appellate Court Judges (Catherine Smith)
• March 2022: Recovering Attorney Fees on Appeal (Howard Goodfriend)
• Febraury 2022: Sorry “Parents,” Your “Fur Babies” are Chattel (Valerie Villacin)
• Janaury 2022: When Waiting to Seek Review Can Hurt Your Client (Ian Cairns)

2021 Archive

• December 2021: Et Tu, Amici? Bringing Transparency to Amicus Curiae Briefs (Jonathan Collins)
• November 2021: “Once More, With Feeling” — Law of the Case and Motions to Recall the Mandate (Catherine Smith)
• October 2021: “Zombie” Remands: a Peculiarly Appellate Monster (Catherine Smith)
• September 2021: Top Ten Tips for Trial Counsel (Part Two) (Howard Goodfriend)
• August 2021: Top Ten Tips for Trial Counsel (Part One) (Howard Goodfriend)
• July 2021: Washington’s Supreme Court Continues to Write Influential Decisions (Ian Cairns)
• June 2021: The Future Is Nigh and Includes a Word Count and Larger Fonts (Valerie Villacin)
• May 2021: A “Nostalgic” Remembrance of Justice Charles Horowitz
• April 2021: Certification of Interlocutory Rulings for Immediate Appeal (Howard Goodfriend)
• March 2021: Video Remote Argument: Best Practices Part II (Catherine Smith)
• February 2021: Video Remote Argument: Best Practices Part I (Catherine Smith)
• January 2021: Did the Sky Fall? A Retrospective on Allowing the Citation of Unpublished Opinions (Ian Cairns)

2020 Archive

• December 2020: Video Remote Argument - Best Practices (Catherine Smith)
• November 2020: Damned Fools (Valerie Villacin)
• October 2020: A Judgment is a Judgment, is a Judgment . . . But Not in Washington (Howard Goodfriend)
• September 2020: Seeking Supreme Court Review – Who Gets the Last Word? (Ian Cairns)
• August 2020: What Color is Your Mask? (Catherine Smith)