Washington: Anti-SLAPP Laws

The short answer

Washington was the first state in the nation to enact the Uniform Public
Expression Protection Act (UPEPA), in 2021, after its 2010 anti-SLAPP
statute was struck down by the state supreme court as an unconstitutional
intrusion on the right to a jury trial. The current law lets a defendant
sued over a government-related communication, or the exercise of free
speech, press, assembly, petition, or association rights on a matter of
public concern, file a special motion for expedited relief. Washington adds
a wrinkle most other UPEPA states don't have: a mandatory 14-day pre-filing
notice to the plaintiff, and by far the longest list of statutory
exemptions of any UPEPA state surveyed so far.

Requirements one by one

Governing law

Washington's anti-SLAPP law is the Uniform Public Expression Protection
Act, RCW chapter 4.105, enacted in 2021 (ch. 259, Laws of 2021) and
effective July 25, 2021. It replaced an earlier 2010 anti-SLAPP statute,
former RCW 4.24.525, which the Washington Supreme Court struck down in
Davis v. Cox (2015) for letting judges resolve disputed facts in
non-frivolous cases without a jury trial -- a defect UPEPA's
summary-judgment-style standard was designed to avoid.

What speech or conduct is protected

The Act covers a cause of action based on a communication in a
legislative, executive, judicial, administrative, or other governmental
proceeding; a communication on an issue under consideration or review by
such a body; or the exercise of free speech, free press, assembly,
petition, or association rights on a matter of public concern. That is the
standard, broad UPEPA formulation shared with other recently-enacting
states.

The special motion

A defendant has 60 days after being served with the complaint (or a
cross-claim, counterclaim, or third-party claim) to file the special
motion for expedited relief, extendable for good cause. Before filing,
though, Washington requires the moving party to give the responding party
14 days' written notice of the intent to file -- time the responding party
can use to withdraw or amend the challenged pleading. Skipping the notice
doesn't cost the movant the right to file the motion, but it does cost
them the right to recover attorney's fees later. The automatic stay of all
other proceedings, including discovery, kicks in at whichever comes
first: that notice, or the motion's actual filing.

Burden of proof

Once the movant shows the claim fits the Act's scope, the responding party
must establish either that an exemption applies or a prima facie case on
every essential element of the claim; failing that, the movant can still
win by showing the responding party failed to state a claim or that
there's no genuine issue of material fact. In ruling, the court considers
the pleadings, the motion, any reply or response, and anything admissible
under the summary-judgment rule (CR 56) -- not just the complaint.

Attorney's fees

A prevailing movant is entitled to mandatory court costs, fees, and
litigation expenses -- unless that movant skipped the required 14-day
pre-filing notice, in which case the fee award is off the table even on a
win. A prevailing responding party only gets fees if the court separately
finds the motion "was not substantially justified or filed solely with
intent to delay the proceeding" -- a standard framed a bit more broadly
than the "frivolous" language some other UPEPA states use.

Right to appeal

A denial of the special motion, in whole or in part, carries an automatic
right of appeal, with the notice of appeal due within 21 days. The
automatic stay of all proceedings continues through that appeal, so the
underlying case stays frozen while the appellate court decides.

Exemptions

Washington's exemptions list is the longest of any UPEPA state surveyed so
far: 12 named categories, on top of the standard exclusions for government
actors and commercial-speech sellers. It also carves out crime-victim
civil suits against a perpetrator; real-property possessory and
quiet-title disputes; bodily-injury, wrongful-death, or survival claims
(unless they involve damage to reputation); insurance-code and
insurance-contract disputes; common-law fraud claims; domestic-relations
and protective-order proceedings; Title 49 employment, whistleblower, and
wrongful-discharge claims (again, unless reputational damage is involved);
Consumer Protection Act claims; and any claim brought under federal law.
But the statute carves back IN the commercial-speech, fraud, and
Consumer-Protection-Act exemptions specifically for lawsuits targeting
journalism or consumer reviews and ratings -- so a business can't use those
three exemptions to escape a UPEPA motion over a negative review or a news
story about it.

What trips people up

Forgetting the 14-day pre-filing notice doesn't kill the motion -- but it
does kill the fee award. Unlike most UPEPA states, Washington requires
written notice to the plaintiff at least 14 days before filing. A movant
who skips it can still get the case dismissed, but loses the right to
recover attorney's fees under RCW 4.105.090 even after winning outright.

The exemptions list is unusually long, and several categories have a
carve-back-in for journalism and consumer reviews. A business claiming
its lawsuit falls outside the Act because it's "commercial speech," a
fraud claim, or a Consumer Protection Act claim should double-check
whether the suit actually targets journalism or a consumer review --
because if it does, the exemption doesn't apply and the Act is back in
play.

The stay can start before the motion is even filed. Because the
automatic stay attaches at the earlier of the 14-day notice or the actual
filing, a plaintiff who receives that notice needs to treat discovery as
frozen immediately -- not just once the motion itself lands on the docket.

Common questions

Do I have to warn the other side before filing my special motion? Yes.
Washington requires written notice at least 14 days before filing. You can
still file and win without it, but you'll lose your right to recover
attorney's fees.

Can I use this motion if I'm being sued over a bad online review I
wrote? Generally the Act doesn't cover commercial-speech, fraud, or
Consumer Protection Act claims against sellers -- but there's an exception:
if the suit targets the communication of consumer opinions, complaints, or
reviews and ratings of businesses, the Act applies anyway.

What if I lose the motion -- do I owe the other side's fees? Only if
the court separately finds the motion "was not substantially justified or
filed solely with intent to delay the proceeding." An ordinary loss on the
merits doesn't by itself trigger a fee award against you.

Statutes and sources

• RCW 4.105.010 — "(2) ... this chapter applies to a cause of action
  asserted in a civil action against a person based on the person's: (a)
  Communication in a legislative, executive, judicial, administrative, or
  other governmental proceeding; (b) Communication on an issue under
  consideration or review [in such a proceeding]; (c) Exercise of the
  right of freedom of speech or of the press, the right to assemble or
  petition, or the right of association ... on a matter of public
  concern. (3)(a) ... this chapter does not apply to a cause of action
  asserted: (i) Against a governmental unit ...; ... (iv) Against a
  person named in a civil suit brought by a victim of a crime against a
  perpetrator; (v) Against a person named in a civil suit brought to
  establish or declare real property possessory rights ...; (vi) Seeking
  recovery for bodily injury, wrongful death, or survival ... unless the
  claims involve damage to reputation; (vii) Brought under the insurance
  code ...; (viii) Based on a common law fraud claim; (ix) Brought under
  Title 26 RCW ...; (x) Brought under Title 49 RCW; ... (xi) Brought under
  the consumer protection act ...; or (xii) Any claim brought under
  federal law. (b) This chapter applies to a cause of action asserted
  under (a)(iii), (viii), or (xi) ... when the cause of action is: (i) A
  legal action ... related to the gathering, receiving, posting, or
  processing of information for communication to the public ... for the
  creation, dissemination, exhibition, or advertisement or other similar
  promotion of a dramatic, literary, musical, political, journalistic, or
  otherwise artistic work ...; or (ii) A legal action ... related to the
  communication, gathering, receiving, posting, or processing of consumer
  opinions or commentary, evaluations of consumer complaints, or reviews
  or ratings of businesses." Source:
  https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=4.105.010 (accessed
  2026-07-05).
• RCW 4.105.020 — "(1) Prior to filing a special motion for expedited
  relief ..., the moving party shall provide written notice to the
  responding party of its intent to file the motion at least 14 days
  prior to filing the motion. ... If the moving party fails to provide
  the notice required under this subsection, such failure shall not
  affect the moving party's right to relief under this chapter, but the
  moving party shall not be entitled to recover reasonable attorneys' fees
  under RCW 4.105.090. (2) Not later than sixty days after a party is
  served with a complaint ... the party may file a special motion for
  expedited relief to dismiss the cause of action or part of the cause of
  action." Source: https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=4.105.020
  (accessed 2026-07-05).
• RCW 4.105.030 — "(1) ... on the earlier of the giving of notice of
  intent to file a motion under RCW 4.105.020(1) or the filing of a motion
  under RCW 4.105.020(2): (a) All other proceedings between the moving
  party and responding party, including discovery and a pending hearing
  or motion, are stayed ... (3) ... if a party appeals from an order
  ruling on a motion under RCW 4.105.020, all proceedings between all
  parties in the action are stayed. The stay remains in effect until the
  conclusion of the appeal." Source:
  https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=4.105.030 (accessed
  2026-07-05).
• RCW 4.105.050 — "In ruling on a motion under RCW 4.105.020, the
  court shall consider the pleadings, the motion, any reply or response to
  the motion, and any evidence that could be considered in ruling on a
  motion for summary judgment under superior court civil rule 56." Source:
  https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=4.105.050 (accessed
  2026-07-05).
• RCW 4.105.060 — "(1) In ruling on a motion under RCW 4.105.020, the
  court shall dismiss with prejudice a cause of action, or part of a
  cause of action, if: (a) The moving party establishes ... that this
  chapter applies; (b) The responding party fails to establish ... that
  this chapter does not apply; and (c) Either: (i) The responding party
  fails to establish a prima facie case as to each essential element of
  the cause of action; or (ii) The moving party establishes that: (A) The
  responding party failed to state a cause of action upon which relief
  can be granted; or (B) There is no genuine issue as to any material fact
  and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Source:
  https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=4.105.060 (accessed
  2026-07-05).
• RCW 4.105.080 — "A moving party may appeal as a matter of right from
  an order denying, in whole or in part, a motion under RCW 4.105.020. The
  appeal must be filed not later than twenty-one days after entry of the
  order." Source: https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=4.105.080
  (accessed 2026-07-05).
• RCW 4.105.090 — "On a motion under RCW 4.105.020, the court shall
  award court costs, reasonable attorneys' fees, and reasonable litigation
  expenses related to the motion: (1) To the moving party if the moving
  party prevails on the motion; or (2) To the responding party if the
  responding party prevails on the motion and the court finds that the
  motion was not substantially justified or filed solely with intent to
  delay the proceeding." Source:
  https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=4.105.090 (accessed
  2026-07-05).