Leishman v. Reynolds

• Court: Washington Court of Appeals
• Writing for the Court: Maxa, P.J.
• Docket Number: 58929-0-II
• Decision Date: 23 December 2025
• Citation: Leishman v. Reynolds, 58929-0-II (Wash. App. Dec 23, 2025)
• Parties: ROGER LEISHMAN, Appellant, v. KATHRYN NADINE REYNOLDS, Executive Director of the Washington State Executive Ethics Board; and OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR, Respondent.

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ROGER LEISHMAN, Appellant, v. KATHRYN NADINE REYNOLDS, Executive Director of the Washington State Executive Ethics Board; and OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR, Respondent.

No. 58929-0-II

Court of Appeals of Washington, Division 2

December 23, 2025

UNPUBLISHED OPINION

Maxa P.J.

Roger Leishman appeals the trial court's final judgment following a bench trial in his lawsuit under the Public Records Act (PRA), chapter 42.56 RCW, against the Office of the Governor.

Leishman previously was employed by the Attorney General's Office (AGO) as an Assistant Attorney General (AAG). The AGO terminated Leishman's employment in May 2016, and Leishman filed a lawsuit against the AGO that ultimately was settled. In April 2020, Leishman filed an employment and civil rights lawsuit against the AGO and others that was removed to federal court. Jeffrey Grant, an AAG, was assigned to defend the AGO and various state officers.

In October 2020, Leishman emailed public record requests to the Office of the Governor for records related to himself and to open employment positions. The Governor's Office never received the October 2020 email requests.

Leishman subsequently sent emails to Kathryn Leathers - general counsel of the Governor's Office - and Grant in November 2020, April 2021, and May 2021 referencing the record requests. Whether Leathers or Grant actually received these emails was disputed at trial. And in June 2021, Leishman filed a declaration in the federal lawsuit to which he attached the April 2021 email. This declaration was served on Grant as the attorney for the Governor's Office.

In September 2021, Leishman sent Leathers an email that purported to attach the October 2020public record requests. The Governor's Office claimed that there were no attachments or the attachments were illegible. The Governor's Office finally acknowledged receipt of the October 2020 public record requests in October 2021 after receiving an email attaching the requests.

Leishman sued the Office of the Governor under the PRA. After trial the trial court entered judgment in favor of the Governor's Office and entered extensive findings of fact and conclusions of law. The court found that Leathers did not receive the November 2020 and April 2021emails and that the evidence was insufficient to determine whether Grant received the November 2020, April 2021, and May 2021 emails. The court also concluded that even if Grant did receive the emails that receipt did not give the Governor's Office fair notice of the October 2020 public record requests because he was not an employee or agent of the Governor's Office for purposes of receiving PRA requests. Therefore, the court concluded that the Governor's Office did not have fair notice of Leishman's public record requests until October 2021.

We hold that (1) the emails Leishman sent to Grant did not provide fair notice to the Governor's Office of Leishman's October 2020 public record requests because the trial court entered specific findings of fact that the evidence was insufficient to determine whether Grant received those emails and Leishman provides no argument that substantial evidence did not support those findings; (2) even if Grant did receive the emails, the trial court did not err in concluding that his receipt as an AGO employee did not provide fair notice to the Governor's Office of the October 2020 public record requests; (3) Leishman's June 2021 declaration in federal court attaching the April 2021 email did not provide fair notice to the Governor's Office of the October 2020 public record requests; (4) regardless of whether the mailbox rule applies to emailed PRA requests, substantial evidence supports the trial court's findings that the Governor's Office did not actually receive the October 2020 public record requests through various emails; and (5) the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying Leishman's CR 60(b)(4) motion based on fraud relating to the September 2021 email to Leathers.

Accordingly we affirm the trial court's final judgment dismissing Leishman's PRA claim.

FACTS^[1]

In 2015, the AGO hired Leishman as an AAG at Western Washington University. Soon after, Leishman started experiencing physical and emotional difficulties and was diagnosed with PTSD. The AGO denied his request for an accommodation for his condition. Leishman alleged that he was being subjected to sexual orientation discrimination. The AGO terminated Leishman's employment in May 2016.

After Leishman was terminated, he filed a lawsuit against the AGO. The parties reached a settlement in that lawsuit.

In April 2020, Leishman sued the AGO and numerous other defendants for employment discrimination in a lawsuit that was removed to federal court. Former AAG Jeffrey Grant represented the AGO.

Public Record Requests and No Response

On October 9, 11, and 12, 2020, Leishman sent three public record requests by email to the Office of the Governor. He requested all records referring or relating to himself relating to the job position "Senior Education Ombuds," and relating to the job position "Associate Education Ombuds (part-time)." Clerk's Papers (CP) at 637. He sent his public record requests to the email address listed by the Governor's Office. However, Tricia Smith, the public records officer for the Governor's Office, testified at trial that in the Fall of 2021 she checked the inbox and junk folder for her email and the Governor's Office public records email, and these public record requests were never received by the Governor's Office.^[2] As a result, the Governor's Office did not respond the Leishman's requests.

After not receiving a response, Leishman on November 12, 2020 sent an email to Leathers with a copy to Grant and Jill Thompson in the Office of Financial Management. In the email, Leishman followed up on his October 2020 PRA requests and asked when he could receive a response. Whether Leathers, Grant, or Thompson received this email was the subject of dispute at trial. Leathers testified that she did not receive this email. The Governor's Office did not respond to Leishman's requests in November 2020.

On April 28, 2021, Leishman sent an email to Leathers, with a copy to Grant and Thompson, attaching a second amended complaint from his federal lawsuit. Paragraph 326 of a 57-page complaint alleged that the Governor's Office had "refused to respond to Leishman's requests filed under the Public Records Act." CP at 638. In his email, Leishman stated, "Also attached are copies of my outstanding requests under the Public Records Act, which are referenced in the Second Amended Complaint." CP at 638. Whether Leathers, Grant, or Thompson received this email was the subject of dispute at trial. Leathers testified that she never received the April 2021 email. The Governor's Office did not respond to Leishman's requests in April 2021.

Grant appeared as counsel on behalf of the Governor's Office in the federal lawsuit in May 2021.

On May 25, 2021, Leishman sent an email to Grant and copied other AGO employees about unanswered communications. This email referenced Leishman's April 28 email to Leathers as unanswered. Whether Grant received this email was the subject of dispute at trial. The Governor's Office did not respond to Leishman's requests in May 2021.

On June 1, 2021, Leishman filed a declaration in his federal lawsuit that attached his April 28, 2021 email to Leathers as an exhibit. But the declaration attached only the email itself and did not attach the October 2020 public record requests. And Leishman testified that the April 2021 email was among a group of exhibits he submitted identifying all the communications he had with opposing counsel, which related to a dispute over compliance with the meet and confer requirement in federal court. The trial court found that Grant had actual notice of the declaration as the attorney representing the Governor's Office in the federal lawsuit. The Governor's Office did not respond to Leishman's requests following this declaration.

On September 17, 2021, Leishman sent an email to Grant and the Chief of the AGO's Tort Division, with copies to Leathers and others, attaching a five page letter. Leishman's letter referenced the April 28, 2021 email and stated that the Governor's office had not responded to his October 2020 public record requests. Leathers testified that she did not receive the email, but she found it in her junk folder after the email was forwarded to her. However, there is no indication that the October 2020 public record requests were attached. Leathers testified that she asked Smith to look for the referenced public record requests, and Smith reported that she did not find them after searching the emails of all the Governor's staff. The Governor's Office did not respond to Leisman's requests following this email.

Grant sent an email reply stating that some of Leishman's communications had not been received correctly and implied that it was due to Leishman's unique email address domain name.

Leishman testified that on September 29, 2021 he sent an email to Leathers with a copy to Grant in which he claimed that he attached copies of his October 2020 public record requests. A copy of that email was not admitted into evidence. An exhibit admitted into evidence showed that the Governor's Office stated in response to requests for admission that the September 29 email was received by Leathers's email server but the email did not contain the attachments Leishman said were attached or that the attachments were illegible. At trial, Leishman did not ask Leathers any questions about the September 29 email.

On October 10, 2021, Leishman sent an email to Leathers, with a copy to Grant and others, that referenced and attached the October...