Attorneys

Professional History

• Partner Pfau Cochran Vertetis Kosnoff PLLC
• Partner and Member of the Board of Directors, Gordon Thomas Honeywell Malanca Peterson & Daheim, LLP, Tacoma, Washington: 2004-2008
• Attorney with Burgess & Fitzer, PS, Tacoma, Washington: 2000-2004
• Assistant Prosecutor, Middlesex Prosecutor's Office (New Jersey): 1998-2000
• Served as a Law Clerk to Judge Jane B. Cantor/Joyce E. Munkacsi, Middlesex County Superior Court: 1997-1998
• As a trial lawyer, Tom has tried in excess of 30 cases to juries. He has obtained multiple verdicts in excess of a million dollars for clients and has recovered millions of dollars in settlements for his clients.
• Tom also serves as Albertsons, Inc. (SuperValu) General Liability counsel for the state of Washington.

Representative Cases/Transactions

• Drost v. Group Health Cooperative, et al., Pierce County Cause No.: 07-2-09460-7 -- Recovered a $776,400 medical malpractice jury verdict in Pierce County on behalf of a nineteen year-old woman who suffered permanent and severe injuries from a mistreated distal radius fracture of her right forearm.  The jury returned a verdict finding the medical providers were both negligent in their care and treatment and failed to provide informed consent.
• Corey v. Pierce County, et al. - Co-counsel to a $3.075 million jury verdict in King County for the wrongful termination and defamation of a 20-year decorated senior prosecutor from the Pierce County Prosecutor's Office. The verdict was received after four weeks of trial.
• Cogger v. Blakeney - Co-counsel to a $1 million verdict in Pierce County against an OB/GYN arising from a failure to properly repair a bladder laceration after performing a hysterectomy.
• Northern Oyster v. State of Washington, et al. - Co-counsel to a $1.4 million jury verdict in Pacific County against the State of Washington for unlawful and tortious conduct that interfered with the client's business expectations.
• Evans v. West Isle Air - Represented defendant air carrier in wrongful death action brought by passenger's spouse and children arising from crash of Cessna 172n. The case was tried over a three week period with the plaintiff receiving a jury verdict of less than half of what she asked the jury to award and near defendant's pre-suit settlement offer.
• Purdy Cost Less v. Hansen, et al. - Successfully obtained verdict in Pierce County for local pharmacy against an employee involved in a theft ring designed to convert hundreds of thousands of dollars in pharmaceutical medications.
• Duncan v. Vong & Battle - Represented defendant restaurant in negligence action brought by plaintiff as a result of a fall entering the facility due to a concrete step. The damages included total knee replacement and special damages in excess of $100,000. Tried case to conclusion and obtained a defense verdict.
• Confidential v. Confidential - Recovered one of the largest dental malpractice settlement in Washington on behalf of a client left with partial permanent facial paralysis after receiving an over injection of dental anesthetic.
• Estate of Nadia Van Rosendael v. Puyallup School District - Represented parents and estate of student in wrongful death action brought as a result of failure of school district to enforce transportation policies. The matter reached settlement on the third day of trial for a confidential amount.
• Figuration v. Hyder et als. - Represented a six-year old boy left with permanent bilateral blindness after his pediatrician and ophthalmologist jointly failed to timely identify and treat an intracranial condition that caused optic nerve atrophy. The matter reached settlement for a confidential amount.
• Estate of Yvonne Sanford v. UWMC - Represented the husband and estate in a wrongful death action brought as a result of the hospital's failure to properly monitor patient's blood pressure which lead to an acute intracranial hemorrhage. The matter reached settlement prior to trial for a confidential amount.
• Estate of O'Neill v. Franciscan Health Systems - Represented the wife, son and the estate of the father in a wrongful death action brought as a result of the hospital's failure to properly supervise the patient admitted for psychiatric evaluation. The patient unilaterally left the facility and took his own life. The matter reached settlement for a confidential amount.
• Thomas v. AtBest, et al. - Recovered a confidential settlement in Kitsap County for toxic exposure of hydrochloric and hydroflouric acid to clients which caused serious physical and cognitive impairments.
• Harris v. Buttorff - Recovered a confidential settlement in Pierce County against a vascular surgeon arising from surgery that resulted in client suffering partial permanent paralysis.