5 Questions with Kilpatrick Townsend's Seattle Office Managing Partner, Roger Wylie

1. How long has Kilpatrick Townsend had a presence in Seattle?

We are nearing the 30-year milestone of service to our clients and the Seattle community. Since 1989, we have intentionally remained in the heart of downtown where the Northwest’s energetic core of innovation thrives. While many of our law firm neighbors moved, we stayed – with our clients. In fact, we can point to many of our outstanding clients from our vantage point on the 37th floor of City Centre. Being near them creates a truer, more collaborative partnership.

2. What clients does the Seattle office serve and what expertise do you offer?

For 25 years, our office was exclusively IP-focused, which has been a hallmark practice of Kilpatrick Townsend for over 150 years. But five years ago, the firm expanded its nationally recognized Native American Affairs practice into Seattle which opened up new opportunities – not only locally – but along the West Coast. We represent numerous tribes with deep roots in the region, including Snoqualmie, Quinault, and Stillaguamish, and Agua Caliente in Palm Springs, California where we are providing counsel on a high-profile $28 million tax dispute.

Our Seattle attorneys cover the gamut of services in Indian Country – from counseling on finance and economic development (including strategy and implementation) to treaty rights and real estate. In the IP arena, we are a go-to firm in Seattle for high-tech, biotech, and
medical devices in all aspects of IP protection and enforcement. Clients include a Who’s Who of recognizable national and international brands and cutting-edge technologies, including Airbnb, Amazon, Coleman, Facebook, Snap, 511, Atreca, NantKwest, and Zymeworks.

3. What sets Kilpatrick Townsend apart from other firms in Seattle?

The Seattle office provides clients with diverse backgrounds and experiences. We can boast of five engineers who had successful careers at Boeing. The firm has compiled an incredible resume in technology which is supported by a team that is the envy of other law firms. Our
tech experience here in Seattle alone can serve the largest proportion of our office’s clients. Though, of course, we do collaborate with the outstanding expertise in our firm’s other 17 offices. With the Native American Affairs practice, Kilpatrick Townsend has the deepest bench of attorneys dedicated to representing Indian interests of any law firm in Seattle. And the need for our services is growing.

4. Have you experienced recent growth?

We have tremendous momentum. Three years ago we created a five-year growth plan that targeted a goal of 20 attorneys in Seattle. We met that threshold in just over two years. Today, the Seattle office has nearly 40 attorneys and staff. One of our primary objectives is to add an enhanced West Coast presence for Kilpatrick Townsend in the areas of corporate, antitrust, environmental, and other litigation. We are actively pursuing that now. While technology can seamlessly streamline communication with clients, we advocate having boots on the ground to be near clients.

5. What are some key initiatives that the Seattle office spearheads in the community?

We have partnered with Amazon on an important amnesty case and routinely work side-by-side with them and other clients to make thousands of sandwiches a year for the Union Gospel Mission to feed Seattle’s homeless and needy. The Seattle office has also teamed with the Snoqualmie and Quinault tribes in backpack-stuffing drives for school-age children in low-income families. We are actively engaged in giving back to the local legal community with networking and mentoring programs at the University of Washington School of Law and the Seattle University School of Law where we also provide assistance with the American Indian Law Journal. In fact, one-half of our attorneys in the Seattle office are engaged in mentoring local law students.