Page 9 - Pierce County Lawyer - January February 2025

A Conversation with the
Very Huggable 2025 TCPBA
President, Liz Johnson
By Michelle Luna
“I’m a hugger,” explained
Liz Johnson. I received this
response when I asked her
why she went into Elder
Law and Estate Planning.
“Injustice just feels hard for
me,” and “I always felt like
high conflict areas (think
divorce law) was not going
to be my strong suit. Elder
Law just felt right given my
background.”
Liz Johnson’s path to law was anything but traditional. One
could argue that it is this non-traditional path to law that makes
Liz such an empathetic and compassionate lawyer. It is because
she has experienced the messiness of life in a way that leaves
many marginalized, that she’s able to step into those spaces and
advocate for the more vulnerable. And when you speak to her,
you get the sense that she’s been practicing law a lot longer than
two years, but maybe she’s just been practicing being a very
good human – which in turn – makes her awesome at law.
Liz explained she grew up very poor, “Like at times couch
surfing homeless poor,” and floated from Bremerton to Georgia
and Philadelphia, or wherever her family could find a couch
or a bed. At 17, she was eager to blaze a path of her own and
worked two jobs to afford to rent a place in a trailer park with
roommates. Over the years, she worked in law offices as a
courier then as a legal assistant. However, when her husband
died and left her with a two-year-old and then she had another
one on the way, she found it difficult to pick everything up and
go on. After some soul searching, she chose to get her
Master’s in Psychology with the goal of helping others through
their own grief and suffering. She loved the work and found
it very rewarding but being a mom with young kids proved
difficult for her to function in that profession. You can’t exactly
“call in sick,” on people with attachment and grief disorders.
It made her feel awful when she would have to back out on a
client at the last minute, and she felt she needed to find a new
career path.
Enter the Law Clerk Program (APR 6). Liz decided to take the
arduous path of spending four years under the tutelage of a
lawyer in the hopes of becoming admitted to the Washington
State Bar. For those who think this is a cake walk, Liz would
challenge you. It may not be necessarily harder than law school,
but it’s challenging to work and learn on the job, “because at the
end of the day the same person who is critiquing your work is
grading your papers.” It requires great commitment from the
clerk and from the lawyer. All said, Liz is happy she did the Law
Clerk Program and loves where she landed.
When asked why she was dedicated to TPCBA, she shouted
again, “because I’m a hugger.” She absolutely loves being
connected to others and has a strong belief that our profession
needs connectedness and authentic relationships. Being an
active member of the Bar, and now the President, helps remind
her that the other side is human too and that we do have more
in common than we may think.
If she could change one thing in the local practice of law, it
would be for people to have a better understanding of access to
justice.
“I wish judges and lawyers really understood
how unapproachable the law is for most
people. Being told `there’s a remedy, but it’s
expensive, and you probably can’t afford it’ –
corrodes people’s faith in the system.”
That’s why she believes that programs like Law and Justice Day
are also so important. It gives young people an opportunity to
have a positive experience with the courtroom.
As to what she has planned for TPCBA during her tenure,
she remarked that “Cathie [Catherine Case – current Past
President] and I both have a similar vision.” They see increasing
Bar membership in a meaningful way as a top priority. She
doesn’t just want the numbers; she wants to attract and retain
members who truly feel like they fit in and belong. And Liz
practices what she preaches. When she learned that there
were some legal hurdles to making the minority and women
representatives voting members on the Board of Trustees, she
jumped into action, found a copy of the by-laws, amended
them and helped get out the vote. She then pressed forward
with the same voting rights for Q-Law. An amazing feat for this
“young lawyer.”
When we ended the interview, she gave me a shout-out and
said, “see you later trailer park sister.” We both laughed, because
since she shared her own upbringing, I relayed that I, too, grew
up with humble means in a trailer park, and always struggled
with the “country club scene.” Her eyes lit up and she replied,
“That’s exactly why I put it out there, I want other people to feel
comfortable, whatever their walk in life.”
Michelle Luna has practiced in Pierce County
for over 25 years. Her mediation practice focuses
on Complex Personal Injury, Police Use of Force,
Government Liability, Medical Malpractice,
Employment and Personal Injury. She also serves
as the Chief Civil Deputy for Pierce County. Email
Michelle@lunamediation.com
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