Mr. Cooper is a full time neutral and has been affiliated with WAMS since 1989. He previously practiced in the areas of negligence and product liability, insurance coverage issues, commercial law and litigation, fidelity and surety law, and maritime law. He began serving as an arbitrator in the late 1970’s and has mediated and/or arbitrated in excess of 4,500 cases.
His mediation experience includes a wide variety of tort claims (including head injuries, wrongful death/survival, HIV exposure, FELA claims, street/highway design, E-coli and other food-borne illness claims, medical, legal and accounting malpractice), insurance coverage, surety/construction claims, fidelity claims, commercial/contract disputes and employment claims. Mr. Cooper also serves as a solo or swing arbitrator in commercial, personal injury and UM/UIM claims.
He has authored or co-authored several articles in conjunction with seminar presentations on the topics of wrongful death and survival actions in Washington and under maritime law (Jones Act, DOSHA, general maritime law). He was admitted to the Washington Bar in 1970 and clerked for the Honorable Jerome Farris on the Washington State Court of Appeals (now on Senior Status, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals). He is admitted to practice in the federal district courts in Washington State, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court.
Education
- University of Washington School of Law, JD, 1970
- University of California, Santa Barbara, BA Economics, with High Honors, 1967
- USA&M Advanced Mediator Training 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004
Industries
- Serious Injury & Wrongful Death
- Construction Injuries
- Professional Negligence
- Commercial & Business
- Maritime
- Mass Torts