Providing Legal Solutions to Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Victims:
Serious personal injury and/or the wrongful death of a loved one are highly personal family tragedies attended by a level of suffering and a sense of loss no one should have to bear.  As an experienced Seattle Personal Injury Attorney, I have the compassion and understanding to remain sensitive to human feelings while providing support, guidance and legal representation of the highest order.

For over 28 years, I have established a well-deserved reputation as one of the most effective and highly respected personal injury lawyers in Seattle, and throughout the entire State of Washington, and have great expertise in a number of different areas of law relating to personal injuries, including: 

• Spinal Cord Injury 
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Burn Injuries
• Slip & Fall/Premises Liability 
• Construction/On-the-Job Accidents 
• Dog/Animal Bites
• Aviation Accidents
• Vehicle Accidents
• Automobile Accidents
• Motorcycle Accidents
• SUV Rollovers
• Wrongful Death

I have handled many significant and high profile cases and consistently strive to fight injustice, expand the rights of personal injury clients and make important changes in the law.  I have recovered many insurance policy limits for my clients including several awards in excess of $1,000,000. 

My clients agree that I work harder than any other attorney they know.  In the legal community, I am recognized as an aggressive litigator who is renowned for my preparation, attention to detail and zealous advocacy for my clients.  I regularly appear before the Washington Appellate Courts, enforcing significant and important changes in the way municipalities, physicians, commercial landowners, employers, and insurance companies treat personal injury and wrongful death victims throughout the State of Washington.

I attest that hard work, compassion and attention to detail are the foundation of every successful settlement or verdict I achieve, and the results speak for themselves:

Verdicts & Settlements

• Joines v. Robison Construction, et al  - $1,300,000.00
• Hensley v. USA - $1,700,000.00
• Hohsui v. ADF, Inc., et al - $2,300,000.00
• Schulz v. Eide - $145,000.00
• Connor v. Cabanas - $125,000.00

If you or someone you know is in need of an experienced Seattle Personal Injury Attorney, call Paul Wallstrom of Mosler Schermer Wallstrom Jacobs & Sieler today at 866-646-0539, or complete the contact form provided on this site to arrange for a free consultation.

Practice Areas and Legal Definitions

Spinal Cord Injury:
Spinal cord injury (SCI) occurs when the nerves within the spinal canal are damaged.  Most SCI's are caused by trauma to the vertebral column, affecting the spinal cord's ability to send and receive messages between the brain and the body's systems that control sensory, motor and autonomic function.  Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of SCI, followed by acts of violence, falls, sports injuries and diseases such as polio, spina bifida and Friedreich’s Ataxia.  The spinal cord does not have to be severed in order for a loss of functioning to occur. In fact, in most people with SCI, the spinal cord is intact, but the damage to it results in loss of functioning.   

Traumatic Brain Injury:
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a medical phrase used to describe the damage to the brain suffered by sudden impact or physical force to the head.  Essentially, the human brain floats in a fluid substance called cerebrospinal fluid.  TBI can result when the force of momentum causes the brain to impact against the skull.  This type of injury, often the result of hitting your head on the windshield, pavement or object, is frequently referred to as a “closed head injury.”  Whiplash can also cause TBI.  These closed head injuries can result in lasting physical and mental problems.

Burn Injuries:
People who have suffered and survived the agony of second, third and even fourth degree burns describe the pain they experienced as among the most severe of all traumatic injuries.  Personal injuries involving severe burns commonly result from explosions, premises fires, defective products, motor vehicle collisions, electric shock, as well as accidental exposure to harmful chemicals and radiation.

Slip and Fall/Premises Liability:
Slip and fall accidents can happen anywhere and can cause serious personal injury.  Most slip and falls happen in commercial settings, such as grocery stores, drug stores, office buildings, construction sites, gas stations and malls, but they also happen on private property.  Premises Liability accidents can include toxic exposure, animal attacks, swimming pool accidents and amusement park ride accidents.  In any event, there exist duties on the part of the property owners to maintain the property responsibly and avoid the existence of hazardous conditions.

Dangerous or defective conditions may be large or small, temporary or permanent.  Therefore, investigation of the claim is essential to a successful case.  Temporary conditions such as water on the floor of a grocery store, or snow and ice on the stairs of a restaurant need to be investigated quickly.

Construction/ On-the-Job Accidents:
Construction labor makes up one of the three most dangerous occupations in the United States today; each year producing thousands of debilitating injuries and wrongful deaths.  Factors that contribute to construction accidents include workers lifting loads with worn and weathered cables, working on elevated platforms without fall protection or wearing defective safety harnesses and lanyards, and/or working in trenches with improper benching and using outdated tools and equipment.  Farming and manufacturing accidents, as well as the oil and gas industry accidents can also cause serious injury and toxic exposure.

• Toxic Exposure: Due to the tremendous growth of corporate industry in the United States over the past fifty years, the number of dangerous, toxic substances in the environment has grown significantly.  Some toxic substances are shown to cause substantial injury to people, such as lead-based paint (linked to brain damage, especially in children), asbestos (linked to lung cancer and restrictive lung disease), dry cleaning and other solvents (linked to brain damage and major organ damage), pesticides such as dioxin and DDT (linked to birth injuries) and toxic landfill waste (linked to leukemia).

Dog/Animal Bites:
Every year, millions of Americans are bitten by animals.  Being attacked by a dog is an extremely stressful event. Many dog bite injuries leave scars and have lasting emotional effects.  In every state, a dog owner is liable for bites to people inflicted viciously by a dog that previously bit a person viciously, or that were inflicted pursuant to the command of the dog owner.

In almost all states, a bite victim can recover compensation from a person whose negligence caused the attack and from a person who violated a leash law, a trespass law applicable to dogs or other dog safety laws.  The owner or keeper of a dog is strictly liable for his or her dog, even if it is the first time the dog has injured someone.  As long as the injured victim was not trespassing, teasing or tormenting the dog, the keeper or owner of the dog is liable for any injuries sustained.  Compensation for a dog bite can include payment for medical bills, pain & suffering, mental anxiety, fear and scarring.

Aviation Accidents:
Aviation accidents occur in a variety of different situations.  While the most common aviation accidents are those involving commercial airlines, many accidents occur with private airplanes, as well as commercial and private helicopters.  The leading causes of commercial airline accidents include engine failures, controlled flight into terrain, approach and landing, loss of control, runway incursions and weather (including turbulence).  Private or "general" aviation accidents can include controlled flight into terrain, weather, loss of control and runway incursions.  Aviation law governs the operation of aircraft and the maintenance of aviation facilities.  Both federal and state governments have enacted statutes and created administrative agencies to regulate air traffic.

In 1958, The Federal Aviation Act was passed establishing the Federal Aviation Agency.  There have been several subsequent acts passed by the federal government regulating aviation such as the Airport and Airway Development Act of 1970, and the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978.  The main source for aviation law is federally based.  States are prohibited from regulating rates, routes, or services of any air carrier authorized under the Federal Aviation Act to provide interstate air transportation.  States are not prohibited, however, from enacting consistent laws, or from altering existing remedies under state law.

Vehicle Accidents:
Legal claims that arise from vehicle accidents are typically governed by the law of negligence.  Any individual who negligently operates a motor vehicle may be required to pay damages to an injured victim.  A personal injury case involving a vehicle accident may become formalized through civil court proceedings or may be resolved through an informal settlement before a lawsuit is filed.  Vehicle accidents can include:

• admiralty and maritime law
• ATV accidents
• automobile accidents
• aviation accidents
• bicycle accidents
• boating accidents
• commercial bus accidents
• cruise ship accidents
• intersection accidents
• motorcycle accidents
• pedestrian accidents
• rear end collisions
• semi-tractor trailer accidents
• school bus accidents
• SUV rollover accidents
• train accidents
• truck accidents
• yacht accidents

The surviving family members of a fatally injured accident victim may be able to bring wrongful death charges against the defendant.

Automobile Accidents:
A car accident is a collision involving an automobile and anything that causes damage to the automobile, including other automobiles, telephone poles, buildings and trees. Sometimes a car accident may also refer to an automobile striking a human or animal. Car accidents — also called traffic collisions, auto accidents, road accidents, personal injury collisions, motor vehicle accidents and crashes — kill an estimated 1.2 million people worldwide each year, and injure about forty times this number.

Motorcycle Accidents:
Motorcycle riders are often exposed to dangers not met by automobile drivers and other motorists on the road.  The lack on any substantial protective barriers, as well as the difficulty that other motorists may have in seeing or stopping for a motorcycle, leaves riders prone to serious personal injury in the event of an accident.

SUV Rollovers:
Although SUV rollovers do not occur as often as other automobile accidents, when they do occur they have a higher chance of resulting in serious injury or death, and are considered to be the most fatal type of vehicle accident on national roadways.  According to the Federal Highway Administration, SUV rollover accidents account for more than side and rear fatal vehicles combined and SUV's are three times more likely than the average passenger car rollover. 

Although SUV's were designed primarily for the purpose of off-roading, manufacturers have since discovered their immense popularity as family vehicles.  Manufacturers have begun removing roll bars in current models.  SUV seat structures are not designed to keep occupants in place during a rollover regardless if seatbelts are worn.  Vehicle roofs, windshields and side windows easily collapse, increasing the risk of occupant head, brain and spinal cord and back injuries.  While the body of an SUV remains the same as it would if used for off-roading, the removal of the roll bars, combined with the high center gravity due to multiple passengers, make rollover accidents and occupant ejection that much more fatal.

Wrongful Death:
A wrongful death occurs when a person is killed due to the negligence or misconduct of another individual, company or organization.  A legal action for wrongful death belongs to the decedent's immediate family members, usually a surviving spouse and children, and sometimes parents.  Under certain circumstances, unrelated minor children living with and supported by the decedent may also bring a claim for wrongful death.  In order to bring a successful wrongful death cause of action, the following elements must be present:

• The death of a human being caused by another's negligent or intentional conduct.
• The survival of family members who are suffering the loss of financial support, love, care, comfort, supervision, guidance, household assistance and general society previously provided by the deceased.

The general rule in wrongful death cases is that one is entitled to recover both economic and non-economic damages which are suffered as a result of the loss of a loved one.  Economic damages in a wrongful death case include an award for the financial contributions which the decedent would have made to his or her spouse, children and/or parents had he or she survived.  It also includes the recovery for funeral service expenses in memory of the decedent and for burial cost.  Non-economic damages include loss of love, society, companionship, comfort, affection, solace or moral support.

If you or someone you know is in need of a skilled, aggressive Seattle Personal Injury Attorney, call Paul Wallstrom of Mosler Schermer Wallstrom Jacobs & Sieler today at 866-646-0539, or complete the contact form provided on this site to arrange for a free consultation.

Professional Profile

The law firm of Mosler Schermer Wallstrom Jacobs & Sieler dates back to 1967. The partners have 167 years of combined experience.  Seattle Personal Injury Attorney Paul Wallstrom is known throughout the legal community as a strong advocate of the injured. He has a proven track record and has obtained settlements for his clients in excess of $1 million.  Attorney Wallstrom provides comprehensive legal services including detailed investigative work and he takes pride in providing the best possible representation for all of his clients.

If you or someone you know is in need of an experienced Seattle Personal Injury Attorney, call Paul Wallstrom of Mosler Schermer Wallstrom Jacobs & Sieler at 866-646-0539, or complete the contact form provided on this site to arrange for a free consultation. 

FIRM ADDRESS:
Mosler Schermer Wallstrom Jacobs & Sieler
One Union Square, Suite 2701
600 University Street
Seattle, WA 98101-1176
Phone: 866-646-0539
Hours: M-F, 8:00AM-5:00PM

MEMBERS OF THE FIRM:

• Paul Wallstrom

EDUCATION:

• Willamette University, Juris Doctor, 1978
• University of Washington, B.A., Economics, 1974

COURTS ADMITTED:

• U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit
  

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS:

• Washington State Bar Association
• Oregon State Bar Association
• Washington Trial Lawyers Association - Eagle Member
• King County Bar Association
• American Trial Lawyers Association

PRACTICE AREAS:

• Spinal Cord Injury 
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Burn Injuries
• Slip & Fall/Premises Liability 
• Construction/On-the-Job Accidents 
• Dog/Animal Bites
• Aviation Accidents
• Wrongful Death Caused by Airplane Accidents
• Aviation Accident Personal Injury Cases
• Vehicle Accidents
• Automobile Accidents
• Motorcycle Accidents
• SUV Rollovers
• Wrongful Death