Mary Barrett Receives Washington State Bar Association Local Hero Award │ March 20, 2020
OLYMPIA [March 20, 2020] — The Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) has named Mary Barrett as the most recent recipient of the Local Hero Award for her admirable devotion and generous giving of her time to help her community and the legal profession.
The Local Hero Award is given to those who have made noteworthy contributions to their communities. WSBA President Rajeev Majumdar announced the award recipients during the March 19-20 Board of Governors meeting. Barrett was nominated by the Thurston County Bar Association.
In her official capacity, Barrett serves as assistant director of the Administrative Review of Hearings Division for the Washington State Department of Revenue, but how she fills her off hours is truly exceptional. Barrett is involved in a wide array of local and statewide legal community organizations almost too voluminous to list. She has held roles ranging from member to board chair to president with the Dispute Resolution Center of Thurston County, Network of Adjudicatory Agencies, WSBA Dispute Resolution Section, and Washington Women Lawyers Capitol Chapter. Furthermore, Barrett has served as a volunteer lawyer and mediator with legal aid providers like Thurston County Volunteer Legal Services and the Dispute Resolution Center of Thurston County.
“She is truly exceptional and enhances both our local legal community and our local community in general,” said Cecilia Clynch, counsel with the Washington House of Representatives Office of Program Research, adding that Barrett is giving of her time in all aspects of life. “… Mary is that friend who brings a homemade casserole or dessert, offers to run errands, and is truly present when someone is ill, grieving, or just needs someone to talk to.
Barrett is also an active volunteer with community organizations and for 25 years has led a team of volunteers at the Salvation Army Community Kitchen to provide dinners for as many as 200 people in need of a nutritious meal; in addition, she and her late husband were active with the local Kiwanis service club.
“Lawyers are more than a profession, but fixtures of the communities in which they live and serve,” said WSBA President Majumdar. “We at the WSBA are delighted to acknowledge Barrett’s dedication in all aspects of her professional and personal capacities; she is a remarkable exemplification of the legal profession.”
Barrett earned her J.D. from Seattle University School of Law and a bachelor’s from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell. She joined the Department of Revenue in 2004 after serving as a senior assistant attorney general with the Washington Office of the Attorney General. She is currently a member of the WSBA Tax Section and Washington Women Lawyers, Capitol Chapter.
About the Washington State Bar Association
The WSBA operates under the delegated authority of the Washington Supreme Court and exercises a governmental function authorized by the Court to license and regulate the state’s nearly 40,000 legal professionals, including lawyers, limited practice officers, and limited license legal technicians. The WSBA both regulates legal professionals under the authority of the Court and serves its members as a professional association — all without public funding. The WSBA administers the Bar admission process, including the bar exam; provides record-keeping and licensing functions; administers the lawyer discipline system; and provides continuing legal education for legal professionals, in addition to numerous other educational and member-service activities. The Bar’s mission is to serve the public and its members, to ensure the integrity of the legal profession, and to champion justice.
