Wash. Rev. Code » Title 4 · Chapter 4.84
Revised Code of Washington

Wash. Rev. Code § 4.84.020 (2026)

Amount of contracted attorneys' fee to be fixed by court

✓ current as of May 2026
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In all cases of foreclosure of mortgages and in all other cases in which attorneys' fees are allowed, the amount thereof shall be fixed by the court at such sum as the court shall deem reasonable, any stipulations in the note, mortgage or other instrument to the contrary notwithstanding; but in no case shall said fee be fixed above contract price stated in said note or contract.
[ 1895 c 48 s 1; 1891 c 44 s 1; 1888 p 9 s 1; 1885 p 176 s 1; RRS s 475.]
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 11 cases, 1957–2013 · leading case: Allard v. First Interstate Bank of Washington, N.A., 773 P.2d 420 (Wash. 1989).
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Allard v. First Interstate Bank of Washington, N.A., 773 P.2d 420 (Wash. 1989). · cites it 6× “Whether the trial court may award attorney fees charged at an hourly rate in addition to the fees awarded based on a contingent fee agreement? II Both the Bank and the Court of Appeals have framed the issues in terms of the propriety of the trial court's reliance on the…”
Protect the Peninsula's Future v. City of Port Angeles, 304 P.3d 914 (Wash. Ct. App. 2013). “¶50 Kailin requests statutory attorney fees and costs under RCW 4.84.020 and .080. But RCW 4.84.010 limits *220 these costs and fees to the prevailing party.”
Marine Enter., Inc. v. Sec. Pac. Trading Corp., 750 P.2d 1290 (Wash. Ct. App. 1988). “RCW 4.84.020. "Whether attorney's fees are reasonable is a question of fact to be decided in light of the circumstances of each individual case.”
Am. Civil Liberties Union v. Blaine Sch. Dist. No. 503, 975 P.2d 536 (Wash. Ct. App. 1999). “Second, permitting a liberal recovery of costs is consistent with the policy behind the act by making it financially feasible for private citizens to enforce the public’s right to access public records. The District states that Washington courts have held that statutes…”
Armstrong Constr. Co. v. Thomson, 390 P.2d 976 (Wash. 1964). “RCW 4.84.020. But in no event are they to exceed the amount fixed by agreement of the parties.”
Brandt v. Impero, 463 P.2d 197 (Wash. Ct. App. 1969). “Two questions are presented: (1) whether the statute permits attorneys’ fees to be allowed to a prevailing plaintiff on appeal, and (2) the mechanism of allowance.”
Wolfe v. Morgan, 524 P.2d 927 (Wash. Ct. App. 1974). · cites it 2× “the bonding agreement which sets attorneys’ fees at 20 percent or 33 percent of the amount collected, depending upon whether the collection was made before or after the bringing of suit, is void as (1) an unlawful penalty, (2) a violation of the code of professional…”
Key v. Cascade Packing, Inc., 576 P.2d 929 (Wash. Ct. App. 1978). “RCW 4.84.020. If the defendant is to be liable for the plaintiff's attorney's fees, that liability must be only for a reasonable amount.”
Puget Sound Mut. Sav. Bank v. Lillions, 314 P.2d 935 (Wash. 1957). “659 (1921), this court held that RCW 4.84.020 (then Rem. Code, § 475) does not mean that an attorney’s fee shall be allowed in all cases of foreclosure of mortgages, but means that in all cases of foreclosure of mortgages in which attorney’s fees are allowed the amount shall be…”
Brock v. Tarrant, 789 P.2d 112 (Wash. Ct. App. 1990). “RCW 4.84.020 provides that "[i]n all . . .”
Nat'l Bank of Washington v. Myers, 450 P.2d 477 (Wash. 1969). “The note and all the parties recognize our long-established statutory rule (RCW 4.84.020) that after judgment attorney' fees in such cases shall be fixed by the court in such sum as it shall deem reasonable, any stipulation in the note to the contrary notwithstanding.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.