POTENTIAL CONFLICT AS 1 ACR FLT IS ASSIGNED OR THINKS HE IS ASSIGNED A HIGHER ALT. CLB TOWARDS OCCUPIED ALT.

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I OBSERVED TA ON TCASII. CONFLICT ACFT WAS 15 NM; FL317; CLBING WHEN TA OCCURRED. ENTIRE CREW VISUALLY ACQUIRED CONFLICT ACFT. CTR INQUIRED CONFLICT ACFT'S ALT CLRNC. CONFLICT ACFT RESPONDED '250;' CTR STATED CLRNC WAS TO '310.' CONFLICT ACFT STATED THEY HAD BEEN PREVIOUSLY CLRED TO FL350. CTR INSTRUCTED THEM TO RETURN TO FL310 AND SUBSEQUENTLY TO TURN TO 270 DEGS. TCASII ON MY ACFT COMMANDED CLB RA WHICH WAS IGNORED REF OUR CONFIRMED VISUAL ACQUISITION. CTR ISSUED US NO INSTRUCTIONS UNTIL THE CONFLICT WAS OVER. OUR 2 ACFT EXCHANGED LIGHT SIGNALS SHORTLY BEFORE WE PASSED EACH OTHER. MINIMUM SEPARATION WAS 800 FT VERT AND 200 FT HORIZ AS PREVIOUSLY INDICATED. CONFLICT ACFT HAD BEGUN ITS DSCNT JUST BEFORE IT PASSED BENEATH US AS OBSERVED VISUALLY AND CONFIRMED ON TCASII. HUMAN FACTORS: CTR WAS SLOW AND NOT ASSERTIVE ENOUGH IN RESOLVING THE CONFLICT. CORRECT PRIORITIES WERE NOT ESTABLISHED. NO RADIO CONTACT WAS MADE WITH OUR ACFT DURING THE CONFLICT THE VISUAL ENVIRONMENT AND TCASII ASSIST WERE PRIMARY IN KEEPING THIS EVENT FROM BECOMING A VERY COMPLEX MESS; AS THERE WERE MANY OTHER ACFT PROXIMATE TO VILLS INTXN. WASHINGTON ARTCC WAS FOUND RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS CONFLICT.