Washington Supreme Court Schedules Hearing Nov. 10 on Proposed Amendments to Bail Rules 

Washington Supreme Court Schedules Hearing Nov. 10 on Proposed Amendments to Bail Rules 

The Washington Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing on Nov. 10 to receive input from invited stakeholders including prosecutors, defense attorneys, judicial officers, and individuals about proposed amendments to Washington Court Rules involving the imposition of bail requirements on accused persons.

The hearing will begin at 9 a.m. at the Temple of Justice in Olympia and will be livestreamed by TVW.

The Supreme Court received nearly 900 written comments on the proposed changes during the public comment period from January through April 2026. The period ended on April 30 and no additional public comments are being accepted.

The Nov. 10 hearing will provide the opportunity for additional input from both proponents and opponents of the proposed changes, as well as opportunity for the Court to ask questions. Unlike a legislative hearing, only those organizations and individuals who have been invited will be allowed to present. Those speaking in favor of the proposed amendments, and those speaking against, will have the same amount of time to speak.

The amendments were proposed by the King County Department of Public Defense, the Washington State Office of Public Defense, the Washington Defender Association, and the Snohomish County Office of Public Defense.

According to proponents, the goal of the proposed amendments is to “advance the purposes of bail by focusing on a person’s risk of flight, by enacting a strong presumption that a person can post 10% of the bail amount with the clerk’s office, and by reducing wealth-based pretrial incarceration for misdemeanor offenses.”

Washington’s court system is governed through a system of rules known as Washington Rules of Court, or “Court Rules.” The purpose of court rules is to provide governance of court procedures and practices and to promote justice by ensuring a fair and expeditious process. The Court Rules process is detailed in General Court Rule 9  and is overseen by the Supreme Court Rules Committee. Court rule changes are adopted by the Washington Supreme Court.

Justice Salvador Mungia, chair of the Court Rules Committee, noted that “the Court rarely holds a public hearing when considering a proposed amendment to court rules. However, especially in light of the interest shown by the public in these proposed amendments, the Court is taking advantage of the public hearing process to ensure it gains as much information as possible when determining how to act on the proposal.”

Stakeholders and experts invited to present at the hearing include the offices and associations which proposed the amendments as well as organizations such as the Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, the ACLU of Washington, the Superior Court Judges’ Association, the Center for Children and Youth Justice, the District and Municipal Court Judges’ Association, the Bail Project, the Washington State Association of County Clerks, the Washington State Bail Agents’ Association, and individuals who have been impacted by bail rules.

The Court will decide at a later date whether to accept all proposed amendments, reject all proposed amendments, or adopt some while rejecting other portions of the proposed amendments.