Columbia Legal Services (CLS) is engaged in multiple cases, at various stages of litigation, at all times. Our advocacy teams consist of lawyers, paralegals, legal assistants, and community engagement specialists working alongside communities impacted by the unjust systems of incarceration and immigration. Together, we seek a Washington in which everyone has equitable rights and opportunities.
ACTIVE CASES
Protecting Workers’ Rights to Organize and Work Safely
United Farm Workers v. Windmill Farms
Workers at a Sunnyside mushroom plant have faced discrimination, harassment, and retaliatory terminations for attempting to unionize. We’re representing workers alongside co-counsel Martinez Aguilasocho, challenging these unjust practices.
Current Status: After sending some of our clients’ claims to be resolved in private arbitration, requesting additional briefing and holding a second hearing, Yakima County Superior Court ordered that none of our clients’ claims could be heard in open court and must be arbitrated instead. And, the court ruled that the United Farm Workers’ claims cannot be heard until all six of our individual clients’ claims have completed arbitration – a process which could take months or even years. Our clients – who were pressured to either sign arbitration agreements or risk being fired – deserve to have their stories heard in open court, as is their right. Being forced to arbitrate pushes their claims into private, virtually unappealable proceedings which will take far longer and cost far more than public court proceedings, while also protecting Windmill Farms from community accountability. Our legal team is working with our clients and co-plaintiffs to overcome this setback and continue their organizing for workplace justice.
Ensuring Fair Compensation for Agricultural Workers
Familias Unidas por la Justicia v. U.S. Department of Labor & Torres v. U.S. Department of Labor
We’re challenging the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) wage-setting process that allows agricultural employers to underpay workers. In the Torres case, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recognized DOL’s decade-long violation of its own regulations. In the Familias Unidas por la Justicia case, we secured an injunction blocking new regulations that would have eliminated prevailing wages standards, enabling agricultural employers to continue paying workers poverty-level wages.
Case Updates: In December 2024, we argued in front of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that a gag order prohibiting use of the data we obtained during our advocacy in this case must be lifted, and we are currently waiting for a decision. In the meantime, DOL appeared in a Kentucky court arguing for the same right to underpay workers without revealing they’d already been ordered to pay prevailing wages in the Western District of Washington. With the support of Kentucky counsel, we moved to intervene in that case in order to notify the court of DOL’s obligations – but so far, the Kentucky court has not ruled on our motion. We continue to advocate for the right of all worker to be paid fairly for the work they do, regardless of what state they live in or which judge is hearing their claims.
Legislative Victory: We helped pass legislation that empowers farm workers to participate directly in wage-setting surveys, ensuring more accurate and transparent information is shared with the government.
Protecting Young People from Unlawful Transfers to Adult Prisons
Ta’afulisia et al. v. Department of Children, Youth, and Families et al.
In July 2024, the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) transferred 43 youth to adult prisons in violation of legal protocols and without notification to families, lawyers, courts, or the youth. These transfers disrupted the young people’s education, mental health care, and support systems. For two weeks, the youth remained in adult prison until Columbia Legal Services secured a preliminary injunction returning them to appropriate rehabilitation settings, in line with our prior settlement protecting residents under 25.
Current Status: We are continuing to advocate for the rights of incarcerated young people and for our clients to be made whole after DCYF’s unlawful and traumatizing treatment of them. As we continue to advocate to DCYF and to the legislature to improve incarceration conditions of children and young adults, we have moved our prelaminary injunction hearing to June 2025 to allow our legislative efforts to have their greatest possible impact.
Fighting Unjust Punishment Based on Faulty Drug Tests
Bell v. Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC)
We filed a class action lawsuit against the DOC for using unreliable drug tests to justify cruel punishments, including solitary confinement and extended prison time.
Current Status: The Washington Supreme Court declined to hear direct review of our clients’ claims, so we are now pursuing both a Personal Restraint Petition on behalf of our named plaintiff, Clifford Bell, to remedy DOC’s unjust and cruel treatment of him, while also appealing the civil rights claims of the hundreds or even thousands of incarcerated people in Washington DOC facilities who have been similarly subjected to faulty, unreliable drug testing and lost access to hard-earned privileges, good behavior time credits, or who have been placed into solitary confinement despite the lack of any credible evidence against them.
Ongoing Investigations and Advocacy
As the Trump administration has levied an onslaught of unconstitutional Executive Orders against immigrants and communities of color, and attack and dismantle diversity, equity, and racial justice measures, CLS has stepped into action. We are gathering with our colleagues across Washington – organizers, community members, and legal advocates – to protect one another, share information, generate Know Your Rights materials, and strategize together to achieve the strongest protections and achieve the greatest impact. We are creating new teams, increasing our reach into communities across Washington, supporting community-led organizing, and ensuring that our partners and communities have the most up to date information possible despite many chaotic and rapid changes. Many CLS advocates were here during Trump’s first four years and remember well the strategies and tactics we used to defeat the injustices of that time – and with experienced teams and new staff from a wide variety of backgrounds, we are energized and ready to continue the fight.
As we prepare for the upcoming legislative session and new administration, we are committed to our greater vision: communities where every person enjoys full human rights and economic opportunities. This work is only possible because of the unwavering support of our donors and community partners who share our belief in the transformative power of justice.
Thank you for standing with us!
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