H-3214

AN ACT Relating to transfer of litigation; and adding a new chapter to Title 4 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

PART I

TRANSFER

NEW SECTION. Sec. 101. POWER TO TRANSFER. A court of record of this state may transfer an action or any part of an action to a court of record not of this state pursuant to sections 102 through 110 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 102. TRANSFER BY COURT HAVING JURISDICTION. A court of record of this state that has jurisdiction of the subject matter of an action and the parties may transfer all or any part of the action to a court not of this state that consents to the transfer and can exercise jurisdiction over the matters transferred.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 103. TRANSFER BY COURT LACKING JURISDICTION. A court of record of this state that lacks jurisdiction of the subject matter of an action or part of an action or that lacks jurisdiction over a party may transfer all or any part of the action to a court not of this state that consents to the transfer and can exercise jurisdiction over the matters and parties transferred.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 104. REASONS FOR TRANSFER. A transfer may be ordered to serve the fair, effective, and efficient administration of justice and the convenience of the parties and witnesses. The court shall consider all relevant factors, including the interest of each plaintiff in selecting a forum and the public interest in securing a single litigation and disposition of related matters.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 105. TRANSFERRING COURT'S ORDER. A court may order transfer on motion by a party or on its own initiative after notice and opportunity to be heard. A transfer order must state the reasons for transfer. If part of an action is transferred, the order must state the part as a term of transfer; the order may state other terms of transfer. The court shall give notice of the transfer order to the parties. A party or the court may file the transfer order in the receiving court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 106. WHEN TRANSFER EFFECTIVE. A transfer takes effect when an order accepting transfer is filed in the transferring court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 107. TRANSMITTING RECORD. After notice of an order accepting a transfer is filed in the transferring court, the court shall send relevant portions of the record to the receiving court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 108. PENDING PROCEDURES. A procedure pending at the time of transfer must be completed according to the rules of the transferring court, measuring applicable time limits as if the procedure had been initiated ten days after the day the transfer took effect, unless otherwise ordered by the transferring court or by the receiving court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 109. RETURN. The transferring court shall accept the return of any matter ordered returned by the receiving court pursuant to the terms of the transfer order or for lack of jurisdiction in the receiving court. A return takes effect when a return order is filed in the transferring court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 110. APPELLATE REVIEW. An order granting or refusing transfer is reviewable only by extraordinary writ or permissive interlocutory appeal at the time the order is entered. A ruling not reviewed before a transfer takes effect is not reviewable in this state except as to matters returned or transferred back.

PART II

RECEIPT

NEW SECTION. Sec. 201. RECEIPT. A court of this state may accept transfer of an action or any part of an action pursuant to sections 202 through 219 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 202. RECEIPT BY COURT HAVING JURISDICTION. A court that can exercise jurisdiction over the subject matter and parties may accept a transfer whether or not the transferring court had jurisdiction of the subject matter or parties.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 203. RECEIPT BY COURT LACKING PERSONAL JURISDICTION. A receiving court that can exercise jurisdiction over the subject matter may assert jurisdiction over a party that is within the personal and subject matter jurisdiction of the transferring court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 204. RECEIPT REFUSED. A receiving court may refuse to accept transfer for any reason, but shall state the reasons for the refusal.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 205. RECEIPT ORDER. A party may move for an order accepting or refusing a transfer. The receiving court shall enter an order accepting the transfer unless within thirty days after the motion was made the court enters an order refusing the transfer or directing further proceedings to determine whether to accept the transfer.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 206. NOTICE OF RECEIPT. The receiving court shall give all parties notice of the order accepting or refusing transfer. A party or the court may file the order in the transferring court. The transfer takes effect when an order accepting transfer is filed in the transferring court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 207. REQUEST FOR RECORD. The receiving court may request the transferring court to send relevant portions of the record to aid in deciding whether to accept transfer or to supplement the record sent by the transferring court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 208. TERMS OF TRANSFER. The receiving court for good cause may depart from the terms specified in the transfer order.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 209. STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS. If the transferring court had jurisdiction of the subject matter and parties, the receiving court may not dismiss because of a statute of limitations a claim that would not be dismissed on that ground by the transferring court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 210. DATE OF FILING. The receiving court shall treat the matters transferred as if they were initially filed on the date of filing in the transferring court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 211. TRANSFERRING COURT PROCEDURES. A procedure completed in the transferring court before transfer has the same effect in the receiving court as in the transferring court unless the receiving court orders otherwise. A procedure pending at the time of transfer must be completed according to the rules of the transferring court, measuring applicable time limits as if the procedure had been initiated ten days after the transfer took effect, unless otherwise ordered by the transferring or receiving court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 212. OUTSTANDING ORDERS. An injunction or other order in effect at the time of transfer remains in effect after transfer according to its terms until dissolved or modified by the receiving court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 213. PAST ORDERS. The receiving court may vacate or amend an order made by the transferring court as if it had entered the order.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 214. APPEARANCE OF COUNSEL. Ordinarily the receiving court shall permit counsel of record in the transferring court to appear. The receiving court may require local counsel to appear only if necessary to ensure orderly disposition of the transferred matters. The law that would be applied by the transferring court governs contracts between clients and counsel who appeared in the transferring court and any ground advanced to disqualify counsel who appeared in the transferring court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 215. RETURN FOR LACK OF JURISDICTION. If the receiving court determines after accepting transfer that it lacks jurisdiction of all or a part of the matters transferred by a court that had jurisdiction, it may return that matter and any additional matters to the transferring court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 216. RETURN PURSUANT TO TRANSFER ORDER. The receiving court may return any transferred matter to the transferring court pursuant to the terms of the transfer order.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 217. NOTICE AND EFFECTIVE DATE OF RETURN. A receiving court shall give all parties notice of a return order. A party or the receiving court may file the return order in the transferring court. A return takes effect when a return order is filed in the transferring court.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 218. FURTHER TRANSFER. The receiving court may transfer a transferred matter to the transferring court or to another court pursuant to sections 101 through 110 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 219. APPEALS. An order granting transfer is not reviewable in the receiving state by appeal or otherwise. An order accepting or refusing to accept transfer, or granting or refusing to grant return, is reviewable in the receiving state only by extraordinary writ or permissive interlocutory appeal at the time the order is entered. Review may be had in the receiving state of all other rulings made by the receiving court and of all rulings other than the order granting transfer made by the transferring court not reviewed before the transfer took effect.

PART III

GENERAL

NEW SECTION. Sec. 301. UNIFORMITY OF APPLICATION AND CONSTRUCTION. This act must be applied and construed to effectuate its general purpose to make uniform the law with respect to the subject of the act among states enacting it.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 302. SHORT TITLE. This act may be cited as the uniform transfer of litigation act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 303. SEVERABILITY. If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 304. Sections 101 through 110, 201 through 219, and 301 through 303 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 4 RCW.