Vander Stoep Receives Lifetime Award

Former Chehalis attorney and Washington State Bar Association president Jim Vander Stoep was posthumously honored with the organization’s Lifetime Service Award during a ceremony Thursday in Seattle.

Vander Stoep, who died of natural causes March 8 at the age of 88, had a 53-year career marked by sizable    contributions to the community in which he worked. 

Among the many efforts acknowledged by the association were Vander Stoep’s work in support of a public swimming pool in Chehalis, the construction of the Chehalis Vernetta Smith Timberland Regional Library, the founding of the Chehalis Little League and his service as a justice of the peace. 

Vander Stoep was also a strong supporter of Chehalis Rotary, where he served for more than 60 years, as well as Chehalis schools, the Pacific Northwest Chamber Orchestra, Girl and Boy Scouts and Lewis County Community Concerts. 

“Jim’s highest priorities were reflected by his ongoing dedicated service to family, our profession and his community,” said WSBA Gov. Brian J. Kelly. “Jim’s accomplishments to our profession were made as a small-town lawyer. His time was a valued commodity, but he unselfishly shared it with us. Jim exemplified service above self through his life.”

He was also active in the state’s legal community. 

He was a former WSBA president and board of governors member, a former Lewis County Bar Association president, a life member of the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation and a member and former state chair of the American College of Trial Lawyers, according to the press release. 

“Jim was a person who was fierce in the courtroom and courteous outside it,” said Vander Stoep’s longtime law partner, Rene Remund, in a press release. “His practice of law was based on competence, civility and honesty. He was a credit to his profession and a contributor to his community.”

WSBA President Patrick Palace presented the award to Vander Stoep’s wife, Suzi, and son, J. Vander Stoep, at the WSBA Annual Awards Dinner Thursday at the Sheraton Hotel in Seattle.