In almost all instances, the sale of real property occurs pursuant to some written contract, typically a purchase and sale agreement.  The sale generally becomes complete when title to the property transfers to the buyer via a deed.  But what happens if, after consummation of the sale, one of the parties claims the contract was breached?  Washington courts generally hold that the execution, delivery and acceptance of the deed “becomes the final expression of the parties’ contract and therefore subsumes all prior agreements.”  However, there is an exception to this rule when there are collateral contract...Read More

In the Washington Supreme Court’s recent opinion in Young v. Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., many plaintiffs’ attorneys added a bigger hammer to their tool belt. The case effectively broadens the applicability of Washington’s Unfair Business Practices Act (or Consumer Protection Act, “CPA”), RCW 19.86. Many civil litigants and their counsel should be aware of the change ushered in by Young, as it can increase a defendant’s risk of CPA liability.

The CPA is often thought to apply only to product liability claims, but actually can apply to any “unfair or deceptive acts or practices in the...Read More

Real estate purchase and sale agreements range from the simple to the highly complex.  In most circumstances, the buyer deposits some amount of earnest money to show their good faith and commitment to performing under the contract.  Depending upon the language of the purchase contract, a typical consequence of the buyer defaulting is forfeiture of their earnest money.  Parties frequently structure their purchase and sale agreements so that each party must meet certain deadlines to progress towards closing.  Common deadlines can include securing financing, sale of an existing home, supplying information, performing inspections, and conducting various...Read More

Most of us at some point will be the party to a contract which the other party breaches, or will be the victim of someone else’s negligence or wrongful conduct.  Such breaches of duties owed to you may make the other party liable to you.  But this does not mean you can just sit back and let the damages pile up, expecting that in the end, the other party will be on the hook for everything.  Washington State imposes a duty to mitigate your damages.  That is, the victim of negligence or the non-breaching party to...Read More

In a recent news story (see this video from Inside Edition: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAxpCbUSmrk), a Maine man decided to cut his neighbor’s garage in half after learning from a survey that the garage encroached on the man’s property.  It is a common misconception that just because records show land belongs to someone, that person has the unfettered right to remove unwanted encroachments.  The law is more complicated than that, and engaging in self-help without appropriate legal analysis can expose you to liability.  In Washington, when a building encroaches on a neighboring parcel, the right of...Read More

A bar association, such as the Washington State Bar Association (“WSBA”), or the American Bar Association (“ABA”) is a professional body of lawyers. But where did the term “Bar” come from?  Here are a couple of theories on the subject.

Most authorities contend it refers to a traditional courtroom which includes a railing or bar separating the area for general spectators from the area reserved for judges, attorneys, juries, civil litigants, criminal defendants and court officials.  Referring back to the development of our American judicial system which followed many of the English traditions, some have argued...Read More

Over the last half-century or more, the public has grown accustomed to laws protecting consumers. We hear of large damage awards for perceived minor breaches of duties owed to a consumer. In such an environment, buyers of real estate may be lulled into a false sense of security, assuming incorrectly that they may rely mostly or exclusively on a seller’s disclosures or warnings in order to make an informed decision. The unwitting buyer may think to themselves, for example, “If the seller does not disclose a defect to me before the transaction closes, and I discover...Read More

On June 2, 2020, Washington State Governor Jay Inslee issued Proclamation 20-19.2, which extends the statewide moratorium on evictions until August 1, 2020.  My colleague Todd Cook previously posted about the original moratorium and April modification to it here:  https://beresfordlaw.com/governor-inslee-expands-scope-of-eviction-moratorium-and-extends-moratorium-until-june-4-2020/.  This latest extension continues most of the same prohibitions as existed previously.  The moratorium prohibits nearly all residential eviction activity by landlords, property owners, and property managers, including evictions for reasons that are not rent-related.  The pre-court procedures the landlord would ordinarily follow to gear up for an eviction action in...Read More

In nearly all circumstances, an easement entitles its holder to make only limited use of another’s land.  The default rule in Washington as in most jurisdictions is that even when an owner’s land (legally known as the “servient tenement” or commonly referred to as the “burdened property”) is encumbered by an easement in favor of another’s land (legally known as the “dominant tenement” or commonly referred to as the “benefitted property”), the burdened property owner may still make all uses of that owner’s property which do not “unreasonably interfere” with the rights of the party benefitted...Read More

Seattle has long had a reputation for tenant-friendly regulations.  In the wake of COVID-19, starting in March 2020, Seattle took several actions culminating in a lengthy moratorium on certain evictions.   On May 6, 2020, Mayor Durkan signed into law a bill unanimously passed by the Seattle City Council (full text here: https://seattle.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=4427723&GUID=0651D7FC-E708-40E6-8AFA-090008E8C4A4&FullText=1), known as Ordinance 126075, which extends eviction protections to tenants long past the statewide eviction moratorium’s current expiration date of June 4, 2020.  Under Ordinance 126075, a tenant in Seattle has a defense to an unlawful detainer action (eviction) until 6 months after the Mayor’s eviction moratorium...Read More