Jason W. Anderson

Bar / Professional Activity

• State of Washington
• State of Oregon
• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
• U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington
• Washington Defense Trial Lawyers Association (WDTL)
• King County Bar Association (KCBA), Appellate Section (past chair, 2021-22)
• Washington Appellate Lawyers Association (WALA)
• Defense Research Institute (DRI), Appellate Advocacy Committee
• Washington State Bar Association (WSBA)

Verdicts / Settlements (Case Results)

• Higgins v. Intex Recreation Corp., 123 Wash. App. 821 (2004) (affirming a $7.5 million products-liability verdict).
• Buckholtz v. Am. Optical Corp., 25 Wn. App. 2d 1024, 2023 WL 369414 (2023) (unpublished) (reversing the judgment on an $11.2 million jury verdict because of an erroneous spoliation finding and instruction and remanding for a new trial).
• In re Marriage of Rockwell, 156 Wash. App. 1046, 2010 WL 2670848 (2010) (unpublished) (vacating a division of marital property and remanding for new division).
• Young v. Regence BlueShield, 389 Fed. Appx. 692 (9th Cir. 2010) (affirming the dismissal of claims under an ERISA plan for failure to join required parties).
• Cummings v. Budget Tank Removal & Environmental Services, 163 Wash. App. 379 (2011) (affirming the judgment on $1.6 million arbitration award for breach of contract and violation of the Consumer Protection Act; appellate fees awarded).
• Aldridge v. Aldridge, 175 Wash. App. 1017, 2013 WL 2904289 (2013) (unpublished) (remanding for modification of child-support order).
• Barabin v. AstenJohnson, 730 F.3d 457 (9th Cir. 2014) (en banc) (vacating the judgment on a $10.2 million jury verdict and establishing the proper remedy for erroneous admission of expert testimony).
• Millican v. N.A. Degerstrom, Inc., 177 Wash. App. 881 (2013), review denied, 179 Wash. 2d 1026 (2014) (reversing the judgment on a jury verdict for the defense in a wrongful-death lawsuit and remanding for a new trial).
• Tapken v. Spokane County, 192 Wash. App. 1012, 2016 WL 181566 (2016) (unpublished) (reversing the dismissal of a personal-injury action during trial and remanding for trial).
• George E. Failing Co. v. Cascade Drilling, Inc., 197 Wash. App. 1019, 2016 WL 7470094 (2016) (unpublished) (affirming a $1.6 million sanction for bad-faith litigation).
• Adamson v. Port of Bellingham, 907 F.3d 1122 (9th Cir. 2018) (holding that a ferry-passenger ramp is not analogous to a gangplank and thus is not a basis for admiralty jurisdiction over a negligence action).
• Tapken v. Spokane County, 9 Wash. App. 2d 1027, 2019 WL 24776445 (2019) (unpublished) (affirming the judgment on a $12.5 million jury verdict against a municipality for personal injuries caused by dangerous road design).
• Farzad v. Dep’t of Health–Med. Quality Assurance Comm’n, 10 Wash. App. 2d 1028, 2019 WL 4997963 (2019) (unpublished), review dismissed, 461 P.3d 1199 (2020) (affirming a summary judgment that dismissed defamation and related claims against managed-care company).
• Keodalah v. Allstate Insurance Co., 194 Wash. 2d 339 (2019) (reversing the intermediate appellate court’s decision and disallowing insurance-bad-faith claims against claims adjusters).
• Coogan v. Borg-Warner Morse Tec, Inc., 12 Wash. App. 2d 1021, 2020 WL 824192 (2020) (unpublished) (reversing the judgment on an $81.5 million jury verdict for wrongful death from mesothelioma), rev’d, 197 Wash. 2d 790 (2021).
• Mohandessi v. Urban Venture, LLC, 13 Wash. App. 2d 681 (2020) (affirming a summary judgment that dismissed claims against a developer relating to a condominium declaration and awarding attorney’s fees).
• Matter of Estate of Petelle, 195 Wash. 2d 661 (2020) (holding that a separation agreement that settles all marital property rights waives a spouse’s statutory right to intestate succession).

Educational Background

• B.A., cum laude, Seattle University Matteo Ricci College, 1997

Scholarly Lectures / Writings

• Practice Compendium, Chapter 63: Insider’s Guide to the Washington State Appellate Courts (ABA 2012)
• “Ten Points on Preservation of Error,” For the Defense (DRI), March 2016
• “Expansion of Judicial Review of Arbitration Awards,” Appellate Practice, March 2017
• “Disqualification and Recusal of Federal Appellate Judges,” For the Defense (DRI), February 2019

Honors

• Best Lawyers for Appellate Law, Best Lawyers in America, since 2024
• Rising Star, Super Lawyers Magazine, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016
• Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers Magazine, 2022-2025

“Jason is a superb appellate advocate with a keen intellect. His written advocacy is outstanding. His clear-eyed analysis gives him an ability to solve complex legal problems and present them persuasively to the court.”

“The best appellate brief writer in Washington State in the last 50 years”