Attorney Profile

Respect by one's peers is a reliable measure of one's ability and skill. In 1996 Reed was voted by his peers to be included in "Best Lawyers in America." Selection is by invitation only. This generally reflects the top 1% of lawyers. www.bestlawyers.com

The American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) is an honorary association of exceptional trial lawyers. There are just over 100 members in Washington equally representing plaintiffs and defendants. Membership is by invitation only. After just fifteen years of practice his peers invited him in. In 2005 Reed served as the state chapter president, and beginning in 2007 as its National Board Representative. www.abota.org

Martindale-Hubbell is one of the oldest listing of attorneys and a respected rating service. Reed consistently receives their highest rating, AV.

Reed is frequently listed by Seattle Magazine, Seattle Metropolitan magazine, and Washington Law and Politics as one of the top lawyers.

Reed attended Gonzaga University on a basketball scholarship. In 1977 he was selected to the Big Sky Conference all academic team. He was also named the top student in his major (marketing) and was graduated cum laude in 1977. Reed then was graduated from University of California Berkeley (Boalt Hall School of Law) in 1980.

Williams, Lanza, Kastner and Gibbs hired Reed where he worked for 5 years before he was asked to join Lane Powell. He was a partner there until 2000 handling a wide variety of defense cases including medical negligence, products liability, commercial/business litigation, employment discrimination, and professional liability.

In 2000 Reed changed his practice to representing only plaintiffs including medical negligence cases. He quickly showed his ability on the plaintiffs' side of the courtroom. In his first medical negligence trial the jury returned a $4.5 million verdict. At the time it was believed to be the largest verdict against just a doctor in state history.

From 2001 to 2007 Reed worked with the well respected firm of Stritmatter Kessler Whelan Coluccio where he continued to represent severely injured plaintiffs.

Reed is regarded as one of the best plaintiffs' lawyers in the state. His clients receive the level of representation an injured person deserves.

During the tort reform efforts beginning in 2003 the Governor appointed Reed to the Governor's Task Force on Non-Economic Damages representing victims of personal injury including medical negligence.

Frequently, when the issue arises, Reed is asked to testify before our legislators in Olympia to discuss possible legislation and why it is important to keep the courts accessible to everyone. Reed believes all parties should be equal before the law and no one side or type of party should enjoy special rights or advantages. The courts should be accessible to everyone. He has great trust in the jury system, and while it is not perfect, it is better than any other system of dispute resolution.

Various bar associations and organizations invite Reed to speak at legal seminars to help share his thoughts on various topics related to the representation of injured people. Reed has published more than 20 articles both locally and nationally.