Rule GR 14.1 - Citation to Unpublished Opinions(a) Washington Court of Appeals. Unpublished opinions of the Court of Appeals are those opinions not published in the Washington Appellate Reports. Unpublished opinions of the Court of Appeals have no precedential value and are not binding on any court. However, unpublished opinions of the Court of Appeals filed on or after March 1, 2013, may be cited as nonbinding authorities, if identified as such by the citing party, and may be accorded such persuasive value as the court deems appropriate.(b) Other Jurisdictions. A party may cite as an authority an opinion designated "unpublished," "not for publication," "non-precedential," "not precedent," or the like that has been issued by any court from a jurisdiction other than Washington state, only if citation to that opinion is permitted under the law of the jurisdiction of the issuing court.(c) Citation of Unpublished Opinions in Subsequent Opinions. Washington appellate courts should not, unless necessary for a reasoned decision, cite or discuss unpublished opinions in their opinions.(d) Copies of Unpublished Opinions. The party citing an unpublished opinion from a jurisdiction other than Washington shall file and serve a copy of the opinion as an appendix to the pleading in which the authority is cited. Adopted effective 9/1/2007; Amended effective 9/1/2016.Comment
RCW 2.06.040 provides that all cases having precedential value shall be published as opinions of the court. The statute further provides that each panel shall determine whether a decision has sufficient precedential value to be published, and those which do not shall not be published.