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Annual Awards Celebration King County Bar Association’s Annual Awards Celebration Thank you for Making a Difference in our community. Kaustuv M. Das John McKay KCBA President 2021-22 KCBA President 2020-21 June 17, 2021 KCBA Annual Awards Celebration KCBA ANNUAL AWARDS PROGRAM WELCOME Dua M. Abudiab, Executive Director King County Bar Association OPENING REMARKS John McKay, KCBA President Davis Wright Tremaine LLP Outstanding New Lawyer Award Paul Heer Foster Garvey PC Pro Bono Award Kimberly E. Loges Port Gardner Law Group Helen M. Geisness Award W. Eugene Barton (Ret .) Karr Tuttle Campbell Outstanding Judge Award Honorable Ricardo S. Martinez U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington Outstanding Lawyer Award Victoria L. Vreeland Vreeland Law PLLC PASSING OF THE GAVEL John McKay, KCBA President, 2020-2021 Kaustuv M. Das, KCBA President, 2021-2022 CLOSING REMARKS Kaustuv M. Das, KCBA President Intellectual Ventures Legal Services LLC 2 KCBA ANNUAL AWARDS CELEBRATION KCBA Annual Awards Celebration ANNUAL AWARDS DINNER SPONSORS The King County Bar Association expresses its deep gratitude to our sponsors for their generous and substantial commitment to our mission. DIAMOND SPONSORS PLATINUM SPONSORS GOLD SPONSORS KCBA ANNUAL AWARDS CELEBRATION 3 OUTSTANDING NEW LAWYER AWARD recognizes substantial contributions by a new lawyer to the legal profession, the bar and the community Paul Heer, Foster Garvey PC Determined to score a touchdown, Paul Heer didn’t drop the ball even when he ran full speed into the goal post. “I understood for the first time that the phrase ‘seeing stars’ was a literal reference,” he said. Since then, the only stars he has been seeing are the ones surrounding his name. The NFL Rookie of the Year equivalent for attorneys in the first five years of practice is the King County Bar Association’s Outstanding New Lawyer Award. It is presented to an attorney who demonstrates excellence in legal practice, makes exceptional contributions to the legal profession, and is a recognized leader in the community. As the 2020-21 award recipient, Paul is being recognized for his legal skills, leadership, and hard work. A respected associate in Foster Garvey’s Investment Management group, Paul is described by practice co-chair and managing partner Rafael V. Stone as a “highly talented and gifted attorney.” Testaments to the strength of his legal aptitude include being nominated by the general counsel of a large company to the National Association of Public Pension Attorneys in 2020. Paul’s raw, natural talent is enhanced by what Foster Garvey Investment Management co-chair Bob Perez calls a strong “can do” attitude. “He is not afraid of any challenge and has a very positive work ethic where he will just roll up his sleeves and get the job done; if he hits an obstacle, he will figure out how to work his way through it and not be discouraged.” In addition to determination and grit, Paul is also known for his leadership in the equity and inclusion space. Serving as the co-chair of the firm’s Opportunity and Progress Council, Paul helps spearhead the firm’s strategic diversity initiatives. This leadership is personal to Paul, who believes that “only with true representation of diversity in thought and experience can we work through the most difficult conversations and have full faith and confidence in the outcomes produced, whether that is creating, abolishing, or reshaping the law and all its iterations.” This belief crosses over to his dedication to pro bono work. Perez noted that “Paul cares very much about people, especially those who may be less fortunate and not able to provide for their own legal assistance.” Unsurprisingly, Paul was named the firm’s Pro Bono Attorney of the Year in 2017 and again in 2019. In 2019, Paul logged an incredible 300 pro bono hours, which is nearly ten times the aspirational number of hours under Washington’s Rules of Professional Conduct. Paul’s pro bono history includes creating important precedent. In 2020, Paul secured a first in state history — a unanimous recommendation for commutation of a non-three strikes life sentence on behalf of his client. His petition is used as a model for the Seattle Clemency Project. He is also co-authoring a handbook about representing juvenile lifers and the underlying legal issues that arise in such matters. Among other pro bono efforts, Paul is currently representing a deserving juvenile lifer before a recently established Parole Board in hopes that he can continue to play “an incremental role in mending these systems,” he said. He is also mentoring seven attorneys on their pending clemency matters. Somehow, amidst his tireless pro bono efforts, Paul also finds time to sit on five boards including the South Asian Bar Association, Seattle University Law Alumni, and the Seattle Clemency’s Board of Directors. He credits his compassion for community and his willingness to give back to his upbringing and family. “I would be a shadow of the person I am today if it wasn’t for the sacrifices of my father who afforded me every opportunity he was never extended, and an older sister who was somehow able to juggle the rest of the world while being my mentor and best friend,” he said. “With the grace of so many others along the way, I was shown the value of community. What continues to drive me is the need to show respect for such sacrifice, love and care, and the need to pass on the goodwill of which I have been the beneficiary.” His passion for equity and justice, as well as his commitment to topnotch legal work, permeates everything Paul does. He leads by example in service to his clients, to the legal and the broader community, while inspiring, encouraging, and supporting others to do the same. In other words, Paul is the definition of an outstanding new lawyer, and the KCBA couldn’t have chosen a better recipient of this award. -Joanna Plichta Boisen 4 KCBA ANNUAL AWARDS CELEBRATION PRO BONO AWARD is presented in recognition of the individual’s consistent and diligent representation of pro bono clients Kimberly E. Loges, Port Gardner Law Group The King County Bar Association is proud to recognize Kimberly Loges for the Pro Bono Award. Kimberly has been a consistent volunteer with the KCBA Family Law Mentor Program (currently the Domestic Violence Legal Advocacy Project “DV LEAD”), representing among the most vulnerable of their clients. Kimberly started as a mentee with the program and jumped right into a complex case involving representation of a domestic violence survivor with children in a protection order and dissolution case. The case was legally complicated and involved criminal implications and serious safety concerns. Kimberly worked with advocates and several mentor attorneys over the two years her case lasted. Always survivor focused, Kimberly stayed on the case throughout many challenges and represented the survivor through a contested divorce trial. Kimberly helped secure strong protective final orders for the client and her children. Throughout the representation Kimberly was sensitive to the specific barriers the client was facing as a domestic violence survivor. According to her client, “Kimberly was amazing. She could see when I was ‘weak’ and she made all the difference in the world.” Kimberly has continued to represent clients with complicated legal issues though the Mentor Program. She took on a case of a domestic violence survivor who thought she would never have custody of her children again. The opposing party in that case had obtained orders against the survivor by engaging in abusive litigation. Kimberly was able to step into a complicated case and obtain a domestic violence protection order placing the children back with the client after presenting all the relevant evidence to the court. Kimberly also represented a client who had two different abusive ex-partners — and children with each partner. The abusive partners were banding together against the client but Kimberly was successful in protecting the children and client. Most recently, in her private practice, Kimberly took on a pro bono case, a DV LEAD Client, and supervised her Rule 9 Intern to represent successfully a survivor obtaining a domestic violence protection order. According to a client, “I cannot say enough about how much she gave to me. When I did not think I would make it, I got out. She made a huge difference in the lives of my kids and family. And I will never forget it.” For her past dedication, compassion and endless spirit in advocating for our clients, the DV LEAD Project is proud to recognize Kimberly Loges for the KCBA Pro Bono Award. -Kimberly L. Todaro KCBA ANNUAL AWARDS CELEBRATION 5 HELEN M. GEISNESS AWARD is given for exemplary distinguished service on behalf of the King County Bar Association W. Eugene Barton (Ret.), Karr Tuttle Campbell With a wry smile, a welcoming handshake, and an unparalleled ability to twist arms, W. Eugene “Gene” Barton, the 2021 Helen M. Geisness Award winner, was the steady hand on the helm of the King County Bar Bulletin for well over a decade. This award recognizes a career-long dedication to the King County Bar Association. Given infrequently, it is reserved for some of the most beloved leaders of our Association. Given for exemplary distinguished service on behalf of the King County Bar Association, the Helen Geisness Award is one of the most important honors the bar can bestow. Gene Barton’s career reflects an excellence in both law as a profession and in volunteerism. Gene served as Editor of the King County Bar Bulletin from 2006 until his retirement from Karr Tuttle Campbell in December 2019. During that time he oversaw the consistent monthly publication of the Bar Bulletin, with articles predominately produced by a network of volunteer contributors who routinely received many not so subtle nudges on what topics should be covered in articles for the upcoming edition.
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