Former Chehalis, Toledo, Winlock City Attorney Permanently Resigned License to Practice in Washington

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The former city attorney for Kalama and several Lewis County cities resigned his license in October rather than defend against misconduct allegations and face discipline, according to the Washington State Bar Association.

Samuel Satterfield, formerly of Chehalis law firm Hillier, Scheibmeir, Kelly and Satterfield, P.S. — now called Scheibmeir, Kelly and Nelson — voluntarily and permanently resigned from the Washington State Bar Association following a disciplinary investigation.

While representing a Lewis County woman in a marriage dissolution and custody matter, from April 2019 to March 2021 Satterfield “repeatedly lied” about scheduling hearings and filing motions, according to the statement of alleged misconduct.

Satterfield lied about at least 35 hearings being scheduled and subsequently lied about them being canceled or postponed, often falsely blaming the court or opposing counsel, according to the statement.

Satterfield allegedly billed the client for work he didn’t perform, including drafting motions that were never filed and court appearances that never occurred. However, it appears Satterfield ultimately earned all the fees collected through subsequent work, according to the statement.

When the Office of Disciplinary Counsel was responding to the client’s grievance, Satterfield initially “flatly denied” lying, then later acknowledged being “dishonest,” according to the statement.

Satterfield lied to the disciplinary counsel about filing a motion for contempt in spring 2019 that was never submitted and about hearings being postponed or canceled because of potential recusals and unavailability of opposing counsel, according to the statement.



The alleged misconduct violated several Rules of Professional Conduct for lawyers set by the Washington Supreme Court, the Office of Disciplinary Counsel states.

In a resignation form filed Oct. 7, Satterfield states he’s aware of the alleged misconduct but decided to resign from the bar association rather than defend against the allegations.

Satterfield agreed to notify all other states and jurisdictions in which he’s allowed to practice of the resignation and pay $1,500 in expenses and any other costs or restitution that may be ordered.

It appears Satterfield only practiced law in Washington after graduating from Willamette University College of Law in 2015, according to the work and education history he listed on his LinkedIn profile. Satterfield was admitted to the Washington Bar Association in October 2015. He worked at the same Chehalis law firm until about September 2022.

Satterfield served as the city attorney for Kalama for about five years. During the Sept. 1 City Council meeting, Satterfield said he was leaving the firm for an HR company in Olympia. He also previously served as city attorney for Chehalis, Winlock and as the city prosecutor and counsel for Toledo.

Many small cities in Washington state contract with a law firm for legal services rather than hire a staff attorney, according to the Municipal Research and Services Center of Washington.