Case Summary - Judges of Benton and Franklin Counties v. Killian

Interestingly, this case came out exactly two weeks after our firm went remote due to COVID-19.

In Judges of Benton and Franklin Counties v. Killian, the Franklin County clerk refused to maintain paper files of court documents, preferring instead to maintain electronic files. When Clerk Killian announced that he would maintain only electronic files, the judges of Franklin and Benton county directed him to continue maintaining paper files. He refused prompting the judges to issue a writ of mandamus to compel him to comply with LGR 3 (which states that the clerk shall keep and maintain paper files.. "except as may be otherwise authorized in writing by the Court").

The Court held that maintenance of court document is an out-of-court duty of the county clerk, thus the clerk, (not superior court judges) gets to determine the format in which court documents are maintained. The Court stated that LGR 3 "in effect... [takes] away the county clerks' independent discretion and authority and [gives] it to themselves." The judges cannot do that and it is within the clerk's discretion how to maintain court files.

Here, the judges of Franklin and Benton counties were forced to move into the electronic age a bit like we’ve all been forced to figure out how to live in a new, surreal world. While navigating the anxiety and fear of COVID-19 has been scary, one thing has been easy - working remotely at a firm that was paper-free before I had even started.

Check out the opinion here: http://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/968217.pdf