Recent News

Last month, I discussed how the discovery rule can give a plaintiff extra time to file a claim within the applicable statute of limitations.  In this blog post, I discuss a related topic known as “equitable tolling”. Statutes of limitations bar plaintiffs from bringing claims after too much time has elapsed since the cause of… Read More

Most people have heard of something called a statute of limitations.  Generally speaking, a statute of limitations is a law which specifies a period of time within which a claim may be brought, before it becomes time barred.  There is no one statute of limitations for all possible claims.  Rather, each specific claim is governed… Read More

It is common for real estate to be encumbered by more than one mortgage or deed of trust.  Contexts vary greatly, from construction loans to borrowers just wanting to pull out equity using a home equity line of credit or traditional second mortgage.  In most situations, there is little question about which lender or lienholder… Read More

In the first part of the blog post, I explained what goes into a title policy.  This part of the blog post discusses how a title policy does and does not protect you. Coverage Generally Title insurance policies protect their insured against actual losses resulting from “covered risks,” which generally include:  (1) Someone else owns… Read More

Elsewhere on our website, we have discussed the importance of reviewing title insurance policies and preliminary commitments.  While those topics are important for people involved in real estate transactions, this post is devoted to a more basic explanation of title insurance.  As explained in greater detail in this series of blog posts, title insurance generally… Read More

Lawyers often speak of clients being “judgment proof.”  This phrase does not mean a defendant enjoys immunity from a judgment being entered against them; rather, it refers to a potential judgment being worthless in a practical sense because the potential debtor would not have assets available for collection by the creditor.  There are a host… Read More

Background Since the 1700s, the American legal system has largely clung to a tradition of not automatically awarding attorneys fees to the party who prevails in court.  In Washington, the general rule has been that the prevailing party does not get their attorneys fees unless a statute or a contract with the losing party specifically… Read More

Real estate disputes frequently involve disagreements over rights of ownership, possession, and use of property.  However, the rigors of the litigation process and the ability of courts to process cases typically means it will take a year or more before the case gets resolved through a trial on the merits.  What do the parties do… Read More

In our capitalistic system, the law generally favors freedom of individuals and entities to enter into contracts as they see fit.  Most of the time, when someone breaches a contract, we consider such an event the product of the breaching party’s free choice, and the only liability flowing from the breach is that of the… Read More