JANUARY 5, 2026 — Attorneys from Davis Wright Tremaine LLP secured a groundbreaking appellate decision in Washington that will enhance protection for survivors of sexual violence and enable them, in turn, to help protect future potential victims.
The case arose when an employee and parishioner of a Yakima megachurch publicly alleged she'd been raped by the church's prominent pastor. The pastor, who claimed the encounter was consensual, sued for defamation.
In a sweeping, 100-page, published opinion, issued on December 30, the Washington Court of Appeals overturned a lower court ruling and dismissed the pastor's complaint.
The Court held that the defendant's characterization of her experience as "rape," in a lengthy blog post she published on Medium, constitutes "nonactionable opinion," meaning it could not be the subject of a defamation claim. The Court further found that the defendant was not required to show that the conduct met the criminal definition of rape. As the Court noted: "Sexual conduct between a faith leader and a follower lacks the qualities attendant to a consensual relationship."
In addition, the Court ruled that a private letter the defendant wrote to the head of an Alabama church, where the plaintiff began preaching after leaving Yakima, was protected by the "common interest privilege." Said the Court: "Any church would want to know whether a married pastor engaged in sexual intercourse with his assistant on church property."
The Court dismissed the pastor's claim under Washington's 2021 Uniform Public Expression Protection Act (UPEPA), an anti-SLAPP statute that is designed to provide for early adjudication of meritless claims that chill public speech. It includes the awarding of fees to the defendant.
"Groundless, retaliatory lawsuits are all too familiar to survivors," said Theo Lesczynski, a Davis Wright Tremaine attorney who handled oral argument in the case. "This opinion provides courts a standard to identify and dismiss these abusive claims, allowing survivors to avoid the emotional and financial burdens of ongoing litigation and ensuring they can speak freely about their experiences and protect others."
In addition to Lesczynski, the DWT team handling this pro bono matter included partner Eric Stahl, counsel Caesar Kalinowski IV, and former associate Jennifer K. Chung. Defendant's counsel also included Elliot Ergeson of Tamaki Law, and Sarah Baldwin, formerly of Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP.
Washington was the first state to adopt UPEPA, which has since been enacted around the country. The late Bruce E.H. Johnson, a longtime DWT partner and leading First Amendment authority, was closely involved in negotiating the enactment of Washington's UPEPA bill and also contributed to this case before his passing.
About Davis Wright Tremaine LLP
Davis Wright Tremaine LLP is an AmLaw 100 law firm with more than 600 lawyers representing clients based throughout the United States and around the world. The firm's First Amendment litigation team is widely recognized as among the country's best. Learn more at www.dwt.com.