Practice areas: Employment & Labor, Employment Litigation, Government Contracts; view more
Licensed in Washington since: 1993
Education: University of Washington School of Law
Languages spoken: English, German
Selected to Super Lawyers: 2012 - 2025 The owner and senior trial attorney of Teller Law in Seattle, Washington, Stephen Teller dedicates his practice to helping those who have faced hardship in their workplaces and those who have faced retaliation for speaking truth to power. He has shifted his practice to focus on whistleblower protection, the False Claims Act and qui tam actions as well as other whistleblower reward programs, such as the SEC, FinCen, and IRS reward programs. Still, he remains well-equipped to handle myriad employment law issues, including employment discrimination, wrongful termination, severance review, end of employment and performance plan coaching, and many others. Please take a look at the website for past successes and examples of his work.
Mr. Teller completed his undergraduate studies in 1989, graduating with his Bachelor of Science degree from Reed College, and went on to pursue a higher education at the University of Washington. Simultaneously, he enrolled at the University of Washington School of Law and strengthened his shrewd legal acumen and talents, which are still evident in his advocacy today. He received his M.S. degree in 1992, and a year later, his Juris Doctor.
With a penchant for finding innovative solutions to problems that require an out-of-box approach, Mr. Teller has constantly pushed the boundaries of client-centric advocacy to even greater heights within his legal community. He emphasizes personalized attention, meticulous focus and a tenacious work ethic to see his clients’ legal woes to the very end. For his many contributions, he has been peer-review rated Distinguished* through Martindale-Hubbell and holds a perfect “10.0” rating on Avvo, along with hosting numerous positive client testimonials on the latter site.
Mr. Teller maintains close affiliations with myriad legal organizations of prominence, including the Washington State Association for Justice (Eagle Member; part of the Employment Law Section and the Legislative Steering Committee), the Washington State Bar Association and the Washington Employment Lawyers Association – the latter of which he served as a former treasurer, vice chair and chair.
*AV®, AV Preeminent®, Martindale-Hubbell Distinguished and Martindale-Hubbell Notable are certification marks used under license in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell® is the facilitator of a peer-review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Ratings™ fall into two categories – legal ability and general ethical standards.
Practice areas
Employment & Labor: Employee, Employment Litigation: Plaintiff, Government ContractsFocus areas
Employment Discrimination, Retaliation, Whistleblower
- 80% Employment & Labor: Employee
- 10% Employment Litigation: Plaintiff
- 10% Government Contracts
First Admitted: 1993, Washington
Professional Webpage: https://stellerlaw.com/person/stephen-teller/
Bar / Professional Activity
- Treasurer, Washington Employment Lawyers Association, 1998
- Chair, Washington Employment Lawyers Association, 2000
- Vice-Chair, Washington Employment Lawyers Association, 1999
Verdicts / Settlements (Case Results)
- Recovered verdict of $559,603 and approx. $350,000 in additional post-judgment relief as co-counsel for former employee of Department of Labor and Industries in a disability discrimination and workers' compensation retaliation claim. Clifton v. State of Washington (Grays Harbor County), 2001
- Obtained $320,000 verdict in race discrimination case, as co-counsel, including punitive damages. Ude v. Diamond Parking (King County), 1998
- Most of the settlements we obtain are not public record. In a typical year we settle between six and 20 employment-related cases from small ($30,000 gross recovery) to large ($1.3 million).
- Obtained $1.5 million verdict as co-counsel in race discrimination case. Lucas v. J.C. Penney Co (WD WA), 1996
- Successfully tried medical malpractice case for client who was dropped on floor after childbirth, as co-counsel. Howe v. Evergreen Hospital (King County), 2009
Videos
- Quoted on nightly news regarding airline flight attendant who was fired for photographs of drinking alcohol on her "myspace" page, "Your personal website could get you fired", KING 5 Television, 2006
- Interviewed on local news program regarding Microsoft policy of denying Short Term Disability to workers whose performance had slipped before application for benefits, "Cancer patient says Microsoft cut his job because he got sick", KING 5 Television, 2011
Representative Clients
- People who were mistreated at work.
- False claims act case involving $3.4m whistleblower share for pharmaceutical/medical device sales "off label" promotion, 2020
Transactions
- False claims act recovery of $2m for client who blew whistle on fraud against US government. Mortgage company falsely claimed its products were good enough for government backing. Recovery of $13m by government was shared with whistleblower, 2019
Special Licenses / Certifications
- Certification as mediator at a time when it was anticipated that licensing by the state would be required in the future, 1993
Pro bono / Community Service
- Our case screening process frequently involves guidance towards other resources for support.
Honors
- Received academic award from Psychology Department at top 20 national college, Commendation for Academic Excellence, Reed College, 1989
Educational Background
- Master of Science, Cognitive Psychology, University of Washington, 1991
- Ludwig-Maximilians Universität, Munich, West Germany, 1986
- Bachelor of Arts, Psychology, Reed College, 1989
Scholarly Lectures / Writings
- Practitioner guide to use of CR 60 when new information arises after Judgment, Author, Sometimes When It’s Over, It’s Not Over: Reopening Final Judgments on the merits under CR 60, Trial News, 1999
- Wrote up trial experience and results in a particular case we tried, Author, Jury punishes company for failure to promote African-American worker, Trial News, 1999
- Presented results of academic Masters' Thesis work at scholarly conference, Co-author, Lawyer Overconfidence as a Function of Time to Trial, Poster Presentation at annual meeting, American Psychology Law Society, 1992
- Finalized publication of book chapter on memory for "Aspects of Memory," Gruneberg and Morris [Eds.], Co-author, book chapter, Memory and Eyewitness Testimony, Routeledge Publishers, 1992
- Drafted the "Forms" chapter for a widely-used Washington State practitioner publication in employment law, Author, Forms Chapter, Washington Employment Law Deskbook, 3rd Ed., Washington State Association for Justice, 2013
- Drafted overview of state employment law intended as a reference for consumers, Author, Employment Law Basics, Washington State Association for Justice, 2000
- Scholarly article for local professional organization, Author, Using Vocational Rehabilitation Experts in Employment Claims, Trial News, 1999
- Published scholarly article for employment law practitioners, Author, A Single Employer: Making a group of related corporations into one Defendant, Trial News, 2000
- All
Selections
- Super Lawyers: 2012 - 2025
