Patricia Chvatal Receives Washington State Bar Association Local Hero Award │ July 26, 2019
Tireless Tri-Cities Lawyer Recognized for Community Service, Client Dedication
RICHLAND, WA [July 26, 2019] — The Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) has named Patricia Chvatal, one of the first women lawyers in Tri-Cities and an exemplary advocate for her clients and her community, as the most recent recipient of the Local Hero Award.
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Patricia Chvatal with WSBA President Bill Pickett |
The Local Hero Award is given to those who have made noteworthy contributions to their communities. WSBA President Bill Pickett will present the award on Friday, July 26, as part of a Board of Governors meeting held at the Courtyard by Marriott in Richland, Washington. Chvatal was nominated by the Benton Franklin Counties Bar Association.
For more than four decades, Chvatal has been practicing law in the Tri-Cities, first working at a law firm before transitioning into her own practice and a long, storied career in family law. In fact, Chvatal was one of the first women to practice law in the Tri-Cities and over the decades has devoted her personal and professional time to helping people.
Yet Chvatal does more than give of herself, she rallies those around her to give as well.
“She has supported and encouraged the attorneys who worked for her through the years to continue to do pro bono cases and pro bono work through legal aid, as well as serve on community boards,” said Matt Purcell, a friend and fellow family law attorney in the Tri-Cities. “She does this at probably a calculated measurable loss of income to her business. … There isn’t a charity event I have attended yet that doesn’t have Chvatal King law making some sort of donation or contribution.”
Chvatal’s long history of advocacy and volunteer work is almost too extensive to list. In addition to sitting on numerous WSBA committees, such as the State Executive Board Family Law Committee, Chvatal has been both president and vice president of the Benton Franklin Counties Bar Association, and state president of Business Professional Women. She was a member of the Girl Scouts of Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho Boards of Directors, Tri-Cities Prep Board of Directors, Carroll College Board of Trustees, and the School Commission for Christ the King School. She also served on the Board of Directors for Domestic Violence Services of Benton & Franklin counties, and through her work with the shelter was able to provide legal assistance to women who were survivors of domestic violence.
In 2008, Chvatal received the Al Yencopal award in recognition of outstanding volunteer legal services for the Tri-Cities community.
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.
