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Washington Law & Politics magazine has named not one, not two, but eighteen Lee Smart lawyers as "Rising Stars." The magazine bestows that designation of excellence in the profession on approximately four percent of Washington lawyers under the age of 40 or with less than 10 years of practice. Lee Smart’s 2002 Rising Stars are Karen A. Kalzer, Tammy L. Williams, Charles P.E. Leitch, David F. Betz, Michelle A. Corsi, Toni Y. Davis, Aaron P. Gilligan, Michelé M. Haaseth, Jason C. Hawes, Stacy D. Heard, Jennifer M. Ilenstine, William R. Kiendl, Melia A. Mauer, Dirk J. Muse, Eric S. Newman, Shahzad Q. Qadri, Aaron V. Rocke, and Marc Rosenberg. … Lee Smart also is proud to announce that it has named Karen Kalzer, Tammy Williams, Charles Leitch and Kenneth E. Hepworth as shareholders with the firm. Congratulations to all.

Joel E. Wright and Melia Mauer won summary judgment of dismissal in Wick v. Fultz. Plaintiff claimed employment discrimination against a company manager and minority shareholder, individually, for allegedly discriminatory acts of the company’s president, even though the manager did not supervise the claimant. The court agreed with Joel and Melia that an individual manager cannot be liable for employment discrimination where no evidence existed that the manager herself participated in the alleged discriminatory acts. The court also agreed that there was no evidentiary basis to pierce the corporate veil and find shareholder liability. … Joel Wright and Jennifer Ilenstine also won summary judgment in DeLeon v. Brandal. Plaintiff bought a house and had septic problems after the sale closed. Plaintiff sued the seller and real estate agents for misrepresentation. The court agreed with Joel and Jennifer that plaintiff had no proof that her real estate agent actually knew of problems with the septic system. Plaintiff argued that her agent failed to provide her with a certificate of occupancy from the Department of Health. But the court agreed that this was not enough to prove actual knowledge, especially since plaintiff agreed in writing at closing that she elected to close the sale without the certificate.

Jeffrey P. Downer and Aaron Rocke won summary judgment in Slaughter v. Jordan. A home buyer sued her real estate agent, who also acted as the buyer’s mortgage broker. Aaron persuaded the plaintiff’s attorney to dismiss several causes of action and moved for summary judgment on the remaining claims. The court rejected plaintiff’s plea for more time to conduct discovery because it would be futile, agreed that there was no factual basis for the claims, and dismissed the claims. … Michelle Corsi won partial summary judgment dismissing a Consumer Protection Act claim in Nielsen Brothers v. Solid Trading v. Sun-Mark Realty. Michelle’s client, Sun-Mark Realty, was dual agent in Solid Trading’s sale of property to Nielsen Brothers. After signing the purchase and sale agreement, Solid Trading failed to comply with the closing date. Nielsen Brothers sued for specific performance. Solid Trading in turn sued Sun-Mark, claiming that Sun-Mark’s actions during the transaction were unfair and deceptive in violation of the CPA. Michelle argued that Sun-Mark complied with all of its duties and that the alleged breaches did not amount to a CPA violation. The Court agreed and dismissed the CPA claim.

The Lee Smart Quarterly is a publication of the law offices of Lee Smart, P.S., Inc. for clients and others. It is intended as general information only and is not to be construed as legal advice. You should consult an attorney if you have any specific legal questions.

Editor: Jeffrey P. Downer	Eml: jpd@leesmart.com
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