Lau v. Nelson

This is a wrongful death action brought against the driver of an automobile in which the deceased was a passenger, and against the alleged owner of the vehicle. The accident occurred before the repeal of the state's host-guest statute (Laws of 1974, 1st Ex. Sess., ch. 3, p. 2; former RCW 46.08.080) but had not gone to trial before the effective date of that repeal. On the day scheduled for trial, the plaintiff sought a declaration and order that the repeal was retroactive. The court's denial of that motion, based upon its holding that the law was not intended to apply retroactively, was…