John Wallace

Our Team:   Stan Rumbaugh   |   Teri Rideout   |   Thomas Adkins   |   John Wallace
 

John Wallace

John is passionate about representing working families. He believes every individual deserves justice and every wrongdoer should be held accountable, even powerful corporations, insurance companies, and government.

John graduated law school with a class rank of 8 out of 350 students. During his final semester, he worked at the State Supreme Court for Justice Mary Fairhurst. He then took a job at a mid-size (40 attorneys) Seattle law firm where he focused mostly on employment and consumer class actions. When an opportunity then opened up for him to join Rumbaugh Rideout Barnett & Adkins, he enthusiastically made the switch.

John was raised in Tacoma by a blue collar family. He is a first generation college graduate. His dad retired from the post office and then drove a city bus for Pierce Transit. His mom retired from Sears. His parents taught him the value of working hard. John applies that work ethic on each of his cases.

John has successfully litigated cases in the Superior Court, Court of Appeals, and Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals. John has also obtained numerous favorable settlements for his clients. John’s practice focuses mostly on personal injury, workers’ compensation, and social security, but he does take a select few employment and consumer protection cases.

Admitted to Practice Law
  • Washington State
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth District
  • United States District Court, Western District of Washington

Publications and Presentations

  • Washington State Association for Justice Workers Compensation Handbook, chapter author (2009)
  • The Afterlife of the Meretricious Relationship Doctrine: Applying the Doctrine Post Mortem, 29 Seattle Univ. L. R. 243 (2005)
  • NALS of Washington – presentation on workers’ compensation



   Professional Associations and Civil Service
  • Commissioner and Chair, City of Tacoma Human Rights Commission
  • President, Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association’s Young Lawyer Section
  • Member of the Board of Directors, Metropolitan Development Council
    (a nonprofit organization aimed at helping families pull themselves out of poverty)
  • Eagle Member, Washington State Association for Justice
  • Member, Young Professionals Network, Tacoma/Pierce County

Education

  • B.A., cum laude, University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, Washington
  • J.D., summa cum laude, Seattle University School of Law
    • Seattle University Law Review, associate editor
    • Washington State Supreme Court, externed for the Honorable Mary E. Fairhurst