CWUP 3-40 Assistant Attorney General | Print Version (PDF)

The assistant attorney general is assigned as legal advisor to Central Washington University.

(1) Functions and Responsibilities. According to the statutes of the state of Washington (RCW 28B.10.510), "the attorney general of the state shall be the legal advisor to the presidents and the boards of regents and trustees of the institutions of higher education and shall institute and prosecute or defend all suits in behalf of the same." Also, according to the statutes (RCW 43.10.060), "The attorney general may appoint necessary assistants, who shall hold office at his/her pleasure, and who shall have the power to perform any act which the attorney general is authorized by law to perform."

(A) Location and assignment. Pursuant to these provisions, the attorney general has established an office at Central Washington University staffed on a part-time basis by an assistant attorney general. Where special circumstances warrant it, the attorney general occasionally appoints a special assistant attorney general to perform special legal assignments on behalf of the university under the supervision of the attorney general's office. The assistant attorney general assigned to the university are directly responsible through the head of the education division to the attorney general and his or her chief deputy.

(B) Responsibility. All legal matters pertaining to the university must be handled by the attorney general's Central Washington University office and should be directed to that office through the president or vice presidents of the university. Consultations and communications with that office should be in accordance with procedures authorized by the president or the board of trustees.

(2) Procedures - Personnel involved in legal processes related to university business.

When any employee is served notice of a legal process related to university business, the following procedures should be implemented;

(A) Employee Responsibility. In any instance where a university employee is served a subpoena or other legal process related to university business, the employee should immediately inform the assistant attorney general's office of this fact. This policy does not apply to cases where the relation of the employee to the legal proceeding is purely personal.

(B) Statutory authority. According to the statutes of the state of Washington, the board of trustees may authorize the attorney general to defend a claim, suit, or proceeding brought against an employee, officer, or agent of the university arising out of the performance or failure of performance for, or employment with, the university when such person requests the board to so authorize and when the board has determined that such person was acting in good faith. When such a request has been authorized, any obligation for payment arising from such action shall be paid from state funds as prescribed by statute.

(C) Request for defense. Whenever an employee of the university has a claim, suit, or proceeding brought against him/her which he/she believes arises out of his performance or failure of performance for, or employment with, the university and wants it defended by the attorney general, the employee should submit to his/her immediate supervisor a written request addressed to the board of trustees requesting the board to authorize the attorney general to provide such defense. A copy of the request should be simultaneously filed with the Central Washington University office of the attorney general. Such request should include a copy of the claim, complaint or other document asserting claim against the employee, a brief statement of the circumstances giving rise to the claim, and a statement by the employee evidencing that any actions on his/her part which might have given rise to the claim were taken in good faith. Such request should be made within 10 days after receipt by the employee of any written notice that a claim is being asserted against him/her.

(D) Chain of command for request for defense. The first supervisory officer above the employee who has not had a claim asserted against him/her by the same claimant arising from the same circumstances shall investigate the matter to determine whether or not the employee was acting in good faith, and shall forward the request with the results of his/her investigation to the supervisory dean or vice president for that officer's recommendation to the president. The supervising dean or vice president will forward the request to the president with his/her recommendation. The president will present the request to the board of trustees together with a report from the attorney general and with any reports and recommendations from supervising officers for the board's action on the request.

(E) Interim action. The attorney general's office shall take all necessary steps in the interim to protect the interest of the parties.

Note: The assistant attorneys general are not available for personal legal consultation.