Wn. App. 908, 756 P.2d 174 (1988); In re Marriage ofNelson, 62 Wn. App. 515, 814
P.2d 1208 (1991); Liera v. Senatore, 75 Wn. App. 97, 877 P.2d 700 (1994); State v.
Schwab, 103 Wn.2d 542, 693 P.2d 108 (1985). Accordingly, we must employ rules of
statutory interpretation to discern the meaning of the phrase in question.
"Statutory interpretation is a question of law reviewed de novo." Williams v.
TUaye, 174 Wn.2d 57, 61, 272 P.3d 235 (2012). Our Supreme Court articulated the
process of statutory interpretation in Christensen v. Ellsworth:
A court's objective in construing a statute is to determine the
legislature's intent. "[I]fthe statute's meaning is plain on its face, then the
court must give effect to that plain meaning as an expression of legislative
intent." Plain meaning is discerned from the ordinary meaning of the
language at issue, the context of the statute in which that provision is found,
related provisions, and the statutory scheme as a whole. An undefined
statutory term should be given its usual and ordinary meaning. Statutory
provisions and rules should be harmonized whenever possible. If the
statutory language is susceptible to more than one reasonable interpretation,
then a court may resort to statutory construction, legislative history, and
relevant case law for assistance in discerning legislative intent.
14
No. 32442-7-III
Goodeill v. Madison Real Estate
162 Wn.2d 365,372-73, 173 P.3d 228 (2007) (citations and internal quotation marks
omitted) (quoting Dep't ofEcology v. Campbell & Gwinn, LLC, 146 Wn.2d 1, 9-10, 43
P.3d 4 (2002».
With one exception, unless the landlord timely provides the required notice,