WALLACE B. WASON, JR.

Biography

Wally joined JBW&K in 2008, after practicing for many years in Richmond, Virginia. He is a trial lawyer, first and foremost. His primary practice focus is helping people or companies who have been injured by the negligence or wrongful conduct of another.

He enjoys the opportunity to present his client's case to the judge or jury, and he celebrates when he sees justice rendered in court. Wally sees the trial process as the purest form of law. Going to trial is an event that will allow the parties to a dispute to experience their most direct connection to the application of our laws.

Wally enjoys all aspects of trial. He also knows that big trials have big consequences. Therefore, he is very selective about the cases he takes. When Wally accepts a case, it is a case that he believes he can win at trial. He will not take a case just hoping the other side will settle. If the other side agrees to engage in alternative dispute resolution, such as arbitration, mediation or settlement negotiations, Wally will be glad to help his client address those issues. If not, Wally will spend his time doing all that he can to get a case ready for trial.

In addition to his trial skills, Wally is known for the analysis and creativity that he brings to a case. Clients and other lawyers seek him out for his ability to solve complicated cases. These cases have included representing patients in wrongful death and medical malpractice trials, some of the most difficult cases to win. He has tried complex cases across most of the Commonwealth of Virginia, from Newport News, Hampton and Norfolk in the southeastern part of the state past Richmond and Charlottesville in central Virginia to beyond Roanoke in the west, and up through Fredericksburg to Fairfax County in northern Virginia (NoVa).

Practice Highlights

Of course, like any successful trial lawyer, the big verdicts get the headlines. Some of the notable cases over the course of Wally's career were recognized by Virginia Lawyers' Weekly:

• Co-Author: "Putting an End to Expert Witness Proliferation in Professional Negligence Cases," 12 J. Va. Tr. Law. 1, pp. 38-40
• Listed in Virginia Lawyers' Weekly's Largest Verdicts of 2003
• Listed in Virginia Lawyer' Weekly's Largest Verdicts of 2004 (2 cases)
• Listed in Virginia Lawyers' Weekly's Largest Verdicts of 2006 (2 cases)
• Listed in Virginia Lawyers' Weekly's Largest Verdicts of 2007

If you ask Wally to tell you about his proudest moments as a lawyer, however, he may be just as likely to tell you about a particularly effective deposition, a successful motion, or coming up with the strategic idea that would help to make the case. Preparation is the key to any trial victory or settlement and Wally knows what it takes get a case ready for trial.

Educational and Professional Background

• College of William and Mary (B.A., Economics, 1989)
• University of Georgia School of Law (J.D., cum laude, 1992)
• Admitted to practice:
• Georgia, 1992
• Virginia, 1994
• E.D.Va., 1997
• W.D.Va., 1999

Publications

• Co-Author: "Re-Examining the Independent Contractor Defense: Determining a Lab's Liability for It's Pathologist's Negligence," Medical Legal Aspects of Cancer Litigation, Vol. 1, No. 12 & Vol. 2, No.1, January and February, 1996
• Co-Author: "Why Should We Return to the Dark Ages?: A Defense of VA Code Ann. §8.01-399," Virginia State Bar Litigation News, Vol. V, No. 2, Summer, 1998
• Author: "The Duty to Protect the Client in Rule 4:10 Examination," J. Va. Tr. Law., Summer 2006, pp. 2-3

Activities and Affiliations

• Virginia Trial Lawyers Association (Governor at Large, Board of Governors, 2005 - Present; Chairman, Young Trial Lawyers Section, 1998-1999; Member, Sections on: Professional Liability, Products Liability and Business Litigation);
• The American Association for Justice (Member Sections on: Professional Negligence and Business Torts);
• American Bar Association (Member, Litigation Section)
• State Bar of Georgia (Executive Council, Young Lawyers Section, 1993-1994)
• Virginia State Bar (Member, Litigation Section)
• Master, Lewis F. Powell, Jr. American Inn of Court (2003-2008)
• Boyd-Graves Conference (2008 - present)