Today's Arguments- January 26, 2012

The Supreme Court is hearing arguments in three cases today.

Bird v. Best Plumbing Group, LLC v. Farmers Insurance Exchange, No. 86109-9. Does an insurer have a constitutional right to a jury trial on the reasonableness of a covenant judgment, under RCW 4.22.060, between an insured defendant and a plaintiff?

State v. Patrick Jimi Lyons, aka Jimi Luke Andring, No. 85746-6. The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution and the Washington Constitution, article I, section 7 require probable cause before a search warrant may be issued. The Court must decide if the affidavit for search warrant in this case provided sufficient information for the magistrate to find probable cause.

State v. Rowland, No. 86117-0. Rowland received an exceptional sentence above the standard range before Blakely v. Washington was decided. After Blakely, Roland was resentenced following a correction to his offender score. The Court must decide whether Blakely applied at Rowland’s resentencing.

*Summaries prepared by the Washington State Supreme Court Commissioner’s Office.