Information for the Media
WAP Lawsuit to Protect
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We welcome inquiries from members of the media seeking information about this litigation and its impact on appellate public defense in Washington. Our organization is committed to providing accurate and timely information while protecting client confidentiality and complying with our professional and ethical obligations. Please direct all media inquiries, requests for comment, and interview requests to our designated press contact below.
Gabe Villarreal, Staff Attorney
Press Releases
September 1, 2026
OPD Refuses Agreement with WAP, Proceeding to Trial in the Fall
Last Friday, the Washington Appellate Project (WAP), Washington’s only nonprofit appellate public defense firm, and the State Office of Public Defense (OPD) met for mediation. The goal was to move the parties towards an agreement that allowed WAP to provide ethical and effective appellate assistance of appellate counsel as the State Constitution requires.
The parties reached no such agreement. “We are, of course, disappointed,” says Greg Link, WAP’s Executive Director, “But, again, our goal remains the same: a contract that allows us to ethically serve our clients as the Constitution requires. We hoped mediation would result in that outcome. It unfortunately did not.”
“But what we want people to remember is that our office collectively has more than 200 years of appellate defense experience,” says Link. “We are the most experienced and diverse group of appellate defenders in Washington. Our senior attorneys have handled some of the most important appeals in this State and in the nation. Many of our young attorneys came to us from federal and state supreme court clerkships or have extensive backgrounds in trial public defense. And we use this broad range of experience to effectively advocate for our clients.”
“OPD’s proposed pay-per-case model squanders that talent and experience,” says Link, “Our clients deserve better.”
Pay-per-case models pay attorneys for certain events during a case and are discouraged by the Rules of Professional Conduct (RPCs) that govern attorneys. That’s because per-case models disincentivize quality time on a case and instead incentivize quick work for quick pay. As ethic professors from Washington’s law schools agree, such contracts are unethical under the RPCs and case law.
They’re also unsustainable. “OPD’s proposal would force us to choose between serving our clients effectively and filing enough briefs every month to stay open,” says Link. “That’s an impossible choice that hurts our clients. They deserve better.”
With mediation over, the parties will begin preparing for trial set for some time in November. WAP is also appealing the trial court’s denial of a preliminary injunction that would keep WAP operating during the lawsuit.
Without a contract, WAP will have to close its doors at the end of December, potentially leaving nearly 500 clients without appellate counsel.
August 25, 2026
Status Hearing Follow-Up
On August 21, 2026, at a hearing in superior court, the Office of Public Defense (OPD) agreed to mediation with the Washington Appellate Project (WAP) over key funding provisions of a contract for appellate defense services. WAP has sued OPD on its own behalf and on behalf of its indigent clients because OPD’s current funding proposal threatens WAP’s ability to serve its clients ethically and effectively.
“We are glad that OPD agreed to mediate this case with us,” says Greg Link, WAP’s Executive Director. “We have asked OPD to attend mediation with us on several occasions in the past year, both before and after we filed our case. We are glad that OPD has agreed to mediation now, and we appreciate the trial court’s support for mediation.”
Mediation is currently set for Friday, August 28, 2026. If mediation is unsuccessful, then WAP will begin preparing for trial on an accelerated basis, with a trial date set for some time in November.
WAP has also asked the trial court to certify two questions for review in the appellate court: (1) whether a public appellate defense organization has a right to reasonable compensation for its services, and (2) whether a contract provision in an appellate public defense contract is against public policy and thus unenforceable if it fails to provide compensation reasonably necessary for effective representation.
WAP has forecasted that it has enough funds to keep its doors open until December 26, 2026. After that, and absent any change in circumstance, WAP will have to close its doors, leaving over 500 indigent clients without the effective assistance of appellate counsel guaranteed them by the State Constitution.
“Our goal through all of this remains the same,” says Link, “a contract that allows us to serve our clients ethically and effectively.”
August 17, 2026
Trial Court Denies WAP’s Request for Emergency Funding, Potential Paths Forward Still Remain
Last Friday, a request by the Washington Appellate Project (WAP) that the Office of Public Defense (OPD) maintain WAP’s funding during the lawsuit was denied by the Trial Court.
Without that funding, WAP faces potential closure in the next few months, leaving over 500 indigent parents and incarcerated people potentially without the effective assistance of appellate counsel guaranteed them by the State Constitution.
“We are disappointed by the ruling,” says Greg Link, WAP’s Executive Director. “But our fight to protect the constitutional rights of our clients is far from over.”
“WAP plans to appeal the denial, and today wasn’t a total loss. We appreciate the Court asking OPD to consider mediation. We’ve asked OPD to agree to mediation on several occasions. They’ve refused in the past, but we hope they agree now, especially given the Court’s statements.”
“In any case, our goal remains the same,” says Link, “a contract that allows us to ethically serve our clients as the Constitution requires.”
WAP’s lawsuit against OPD remains ongoing.
July 21, 2026
Washington Appellate Project Files Lawsuit to Protect Indigent Clients’ Rights
The Washington Appellate Project is a nonprofit organization that represents indigent people on appeal in criminal and child welfare cases. The Project filed an emergency lawsuit on July 20, 2026 against the State of Washington and the Washington State Office of Public Defense (OPD) challenging OPD’s funding of appellate public defense.
The Legislature created OPD to ensure the constitutional guarantee of effective representation on appeal. For over thirty years, The Project has contracted with the State and OPD to provide that effective representation, handling thousands of appeals on behalf of indigent clients. The Project’s cases have included system changing cases like State v. Gregory overturning Washington’s death penalty and State v. Blake overturning Washington’s simple-possession law. The Project currently has more than 500 clients with cases in various stages of appeal.
The lawsuit alleges that OPD’s current funding proposal threatens The Project’s ability to serve their clients ethically and effectively. “The constitution guarantees people the right to appeal a conviction and the right to an effective attorney for that appeal,” says Greg Link, The Project’s Director. “The Legislature has guaranteed the same to indigent parents who face losing their children in child welfare cases. OPD’s funding proposal prevent us from effectively and ethically serving our indigent clients. OPD abandoned its proposed model over 10 years ago for that reason. But they want to go back to it now.”
“Our clients are in the toughest position any person could be in,” says Link. “They face incarceration; they face losing their kids. But the Legislature and the Constitution both guarantee our clients an effective advocate to stand by their side and fight for their rights. OPD shouldn’t bargain their rights away and force appellate defenders into unethical representation.”
Read the Washington Appellate Project’s complaint against OPD and the State of Washington here: Full Complaint
Hearings & Legal Materials
Initial Filing
- 7/20/26 – Complaint
Motion for Preliminary Injunction
Denied; Motion Hearing held on 8/14/26
- 8/06/26 – WAP’s Opening Brief & Motion for Preliminary Injunction
- 8/06/26 – Declaration of Link in Support of Motion for Preliminary Injunction
- 8/11/26 – Amicus Brief of the Defender Initiative
- 8/20/26 – Transcript of 8/14/25 Motion Hearing
Motion to Certify Question
- 8/20/26 – WAP’s Motion to Certify Question
- 8/20/26 – Declaration of Link in Support of Motion to Certify Question
Letters of Support for WAP