Trial Lawyers For Serious Plaintiff Personal Injury, Wrongful Death, and Civil Rights Cases

Stritmatter Kessler Koehler Moore (The Stritmatter Firm) is a nationally recognized firm, known for our extraordinary reputation for excellence in the trial and litigation of serious plaintiff personal injury, wrongful death, and civil rights cases.

We have obtained record-breaking verdicts and settlements. This includes the $123 Million jury verdict in 2019 in the Ride the Ducks Aurora Bridge Crash trial for 50 plaintiffs —the largest nonpunitive plaintiff personal injury trial verdict in state history.  And a $44.7 Million jury verdict in a motorcycle v. car crash in 2022 – the largest motorcycle crash verdict in the state.

For almost five years, we represented The Estate and Children of Charleena Lyles against the City of Seattle, for the police department’s killing of a young Black mother who became a symbol in the Black Lives Matter movement.  That case was dismissed by the lower court, reversed by the appellate court, and resulted in a $3.5 Million settlement.

Our team includes 17 practicing personal injury attorneys and a large professional support staff in our offices in Seattle and Hoquiam, Washington. We fight hard because we care about our clients. We will not give up even when the defendants and their insurance companies try to overwhelm us. We believe the civil justice system helps to balance the playing field between a victim and large corporations or the government. We uphold the sanctity of the constitutional right to trial by jury.

Read a little about the history of our firm and some of its partners here.

Brad Moore (upper left), Karen Koehler (upper middle), Ray Kahler (upper right), Keith Kessler (lower left), and Paul Stritmatter (lower right).

Awards, Recognitions & Achievements

The Stritmatter Firm was listed as a “First Tier” national law firm in US News and America’s Best Law Firms.

Over the years, our attorneys have earned local and national recognition for our success as trial lawyers and as advocates for our personal injury clients.

Our members are highly visible in the legal community and have held major leadership positions. Paul Stritmatter was President of the Washington State Bar Association, Washington State Association for Justice (WSAJ), and Public Justice (PJ). Keith Kessler was President of the Washington State Association for Justice. Karen Koehler was President of Washington State Association for Justice. Brad Moore was President of Public Justice. Ray Kahler served as Superior Court Judge for Grays Harbor in 2018.

Associations

Our active involvement in legal associations helps us strengthen our craft and foster growth in others. We are proud of the accomplishments listed below and remain humble in our endeavors, despite the fact that few Pacific Northwest law firms can match this level of talent.

*This list includes our most notable awards and achievements. For an exhaustive list of awards for each attorney, please view our attorney profiles.

Top 20 Jury Verdicts
Stritmatter Kessler Koehler Moore Law Firm was on the list for Top 20 Jury Verdicts in all practice areas for the United States in 2018.
American Bar Association
Paul Stritmatter was awarded the Pursuit of Justice Award from the ABA in 2012, Karen Koehler was awarded Top Trial Practice Blawg from 2011 through 2015.
American College of Trial Lawyers
Keith Kessler was awarded a Fellowship in the American College of Trial Lawyers (Top 1% of Trial Attorneys in the United States).
Public Justice
Paul Stritmatter was awarded the Champion of Justice Award, the highest award from Public Justice. Both Paul Stritmatter and Brad Moore served as national Presidents for Public Justice.
American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA)
Paul Stritmatter and Paul Whelan both received “Trial Lawyer of the Year” awards from the Washington chapter of ABOTA.
Washington State Association for Justice (WSAJ)
Three of our attorneys were awarded “Trial Lawyer of the Year” from WSAJ including Karen Koehler (2003), Keith Kessler (1994), and Paul Stritmatter (1987). Paul Stritmatter was also awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009. All three have also served as Presidents of WSAJ.
Washington State Bar Association (WSBA)
Paul Stritmatter received the Award of Merit from WSBA in 1995. This award is the Bar's highest honor and is given to an individual for a recent, singular achievement. Three of our attorneys have served on leadership roles with WSBA, and one served as a past president.
*The Stritmatter Firm is a Corporation. The partners are technically shareholders. When we use the term “partner” it is colloquial in nature.