People call me brash, and that’s just fine. I have an ingrained contempt for unfairness. My grandparents escaped Europe right before World War II. My step-father’s parents were interned in the United States. I was raised in the shadows of two sides of a war, and I am confident to my core in what is right.
In college I was drawn to the study of humanities and the law. I was fascinated with subjects involving the moral standards of society. At the University of Oregon, I studied political science and geology (due to my lingering childhood dream of becoming an astronaut and paleontologist). I took Spanish and decided why not take French too. Graduating Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude got me into the University of Washington Law School at 22.
More than a decade into my career, I have been honored to represent some amazing people who suffered terrible injustices. I was second chair to Karen Koehler in the four-month long Ride the Ducks trial, resulting in an unprecedented $123 million verdict. I have had the privilege of representing the family of a young woman who was abandoned and drowned while Scuba diving, a mentally disabled man who fell victim to millions of dollars in predatory business loans, a man who survived nine gunshot wounds but lost the use of his legs, the surviving spouse and son of a horrific condominium fire, the family of a man killed aboard a tugboat, and many more incredible people deserving of justice in the face of wrongdoing.
Senior lawyers and peers call me a natural. It’s true that legal work comes easy to me. But the really hard work of what we do is connecting with people, building and nurturing trust, and leading—in trial, in the law, and in the community.
I love what I do because in helping others enforce laws I help protect my own family. Because the law relates to society and the world around us, I also get to learn about lots of cool subjects, like medicine, psychology, physics, and engineering. Even if I can’t be an astronaut paleontologist, maybe one day there will be a case about space dinosaurs.
For more details about Andrew, please visit his personal website.
- Selected to Forbes Advisor – Best Personal Injury Lawyers Seattle, WA, 2023
- Selected to Washington Super Lawyers, Rising Stars, 2013-2022
- Marquis Who’s Who Top Lawyers in America, 2020-21
- CVN Top 10 Most Impressive Plaintiff Verdicts, 2019 (No. 2), 2019 (Ride the Ducks verdict with Karen Koehler as lead counsel)
- Phi Beta Kappa graduation honors, University of Oregon, 2006
- C.Z. Smith Public Service Award Nominee, University of Washington School of Law, 2009
- Sound Child Care Solutions: Board of Directors, 2022 to Present
- Washington State Association for Justice (WSAJ): Board of Governors, 2020-Present • Products Liability Section Chair, 2018-2020 • Legislative Steering Committee Member, 2015 – present • Public Affairs Committee Member, 2011 – 2015 • New Member Committee Member, 2011 – 2014
- Yellow Wood Academy: Board of Directors, Chair 2017 – 2019
- Youth and Family Services Foundation: Board Member, 2010 – 2016
- American Association for Justice
- “Access Granted: Issue Class Actions Overcome Barriers to the Civil Justice System,” WSAJ Trial News, 2023.
- “Ethics in Online Speech,” Stritmatter CLE, 2021.
- “Washington’s New Public Expression Law: How to Navigate the Risks, Benefits, and Procedures of the New Anti-SLAPP Statute,” WSAJ CLE, 2021.
- “Top 10 Things to Know About Wrongful Death Claims,” WSAJ Roundtable, 2021.
- “All Profit and No Responsibility: the ‘Independent Contractor’ Defense in the Gig Economy,” Trial News, WSAJ, 2021.
- “Public Policy in Products Liability,” WSAJ Convention, 2020
- Products Liability Desk Book, Co-Editor-in-Chief, WSAJ, 2020
- WSAJ Seminar: “Resisting Protective Orders Part I and II,” 2020
- WSAJ Seminar: “Ethics in Post-Recovery Representation,” 2019
- Washington State Association for Justice Annual Convention, “Lessons from the Ride the Ducks Trial,” 2019
- WSAJ Webinar, “Wrongful Death Damages,” 2019
- WSAJ Trial News, “Non-Delegable Duty Doctrine Can Defeat Manufacturer Excuses,” 2019
- WSAJ, Winter Conference, Co-Chair and Presenter, 2018
- WSAJ, Trial News, “Excluding Wickizer and Partin,” 2018
- Oregon Trial Lawyers Association, Trial Lawyer, “The Nuts and Bolts of Social Media,” 2016
- Winning With Discovery Seminar, “Resisting and Compelling Discovery of Social Media,” 2015
- “What Judges Want You to Know About Social Media in Civil Litigation,” Chair 2015
- Anatomy and Physiology 101 for Attorneys Seminar, “Medical Exams and the Legal Process,” 2014
- Oregon Trial Lawyers Association, Trial Lawyer, “Protecting Your Client From Social Media Self-Destruction,” 2013
- Student Legal Services Wester United States Regional Meeting, “Cyber-Torts,” 2013
- Anatomy and Physiology 101 for Attorneys Seminar, “Medicine in Personal Injury” 2013
- UW Student Legal Services, “Insurance Claims and Tort Liability,” 2012
- Trial Revolution Seminar, “Direct Examination (Trial Techniques),” 2012
- “Social Media in Personal Injury Discovery” Webinar, 2012
- Motor Vehicle Accident Deskbook, 2009, The Jury Trial chapter contributor
- Journal of East Asia and International Law Self-Diagnosing Medical Malpractice, 2007, “How Japan’s Physician Self-Reporting Procedures Undermine Legal Deterrence and Medical Care”