Born in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Education: Grinnell College (B.A., 1981); Indiana University (J.D., magna cum laude, 1984); Order of the Coif; Managing Editor, Indiana Law Journal, 1983-84; American Jurisprudence Award in Constitutional Law and Criminal Law for Highest Grade and Highest Grade Award in Antitrust Law in Law and Economics; Robert Koleji, Istanbul, Turkey, 1977.

Published Articles: "Better Legal Billing", Entrepreneur.com, September 6, 2001; "Joint and Several Liability With a New Twist," Barrister, Winter 1993; "Transport of Waste in Dispute," National Law Journal, February 15, 1993; "Avoiding Joint and Several Liability," Environmental Reporter, November 6, 1992. Contributing author of the China Law Blog.

Speaking Topics: International Law (Indiana University School of Law, 2004); Technology and the Practice of Law (King County Bar Association, 1996); Avoiding and Mitigating Litigation (Seattle Chamber of Commerce, 1992).

Member: Alaska, Illinois, Washington, and American Bar Associations, Chinese Civil Law Forum. Former President of the King County Bar Association International Law Committee.

Languages: French, some Russian, and some Turkish.

Practice Areas: International Law, International and Domestic Litigation, International Maritime Law

Named: One of Washington's "Amazing Lawyers for International Law" by Washington CEO Magazine, March 2006

(Formerly with Kirkland & Ellis, Chicago, Illinois)

Born in Houston, Texas.

Education: St. Thomas University (B.A., 1989); St. Thomas University School of Law (J.D., 1992); University of Miami (L.L.M. Maritime Law, 1995) Dean's List, 1991; High Honors in Admiralty, Professor Robert M. Jarvis; Judicial Extern: United States Federal District Court Magistrate Judge William C. Turnoff; Held US Coast Guard Captain's License; Raced yachts in Miami and Seattle.

Member: Washington and Florida Bar Associations; Federal District Court for the Western District of Washington; Federal District Court for the Southern District of Florida; Federal Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Languages: Spanish.

Practice Areas: International Litigation; Domestic Litigation; International and Domestic Maritime Law; Vessel Arrests; Cruise Ship Injury Law; Yacht Law.

(Formery with Byrnes & Keller LLP, Seattle)

Born in Chelsea, Massachusetts

Education: University of Washington (B.S. Biology, 1980); Seattle University School of Law (J.D., cum laude, 1997); University of Washington School of Law (LL.M, Taxation candidate); Judicial Extern, Judge Thomas S. Zilly, United States District Court for the Western District of Washington (1997). Former Yacht Captain in Europe and the Carribean.

Member: Washington and Alaska Bar Associations. Maritime Law Association.

Chosen: by "Washington Law & Politics" Magazine as one of Washington State's "Rising Stars" in 2002.

Speaking Topics: Various speeches on maritime law.

Practice Areas: International and Domestic Business Transactions; Real Property Transactions; Marine and Corporate Finance; Admiralty, Boating, Fisheries Regulation and Maritime Law; Yacht Law.

(Formerly with Leary Franke Droppert, PLLC, Seattle, Washington)

Born in Dayton, Ohio.

Education: University of Washington (B.A., summa cum laude, Chinese Language and Literature, 1980), Phi Beta Kappa; University of Washington School of Law (JD with honors, 1984), Articles Editor, University of Washington Law Review.

Published Articles: "The Creation of a Domestic Commercial Paper Market in Japan," Columbia Journal of Transnational Law; "Outsourcing in China: Five Basics for Reducing Risk," Business and Law, February, 2005. "The New Law about Limited Liability Companies of the People's Republic of China" (translated into German) for the GmbH Rundschau ("LLC Review") March, 2006.

Law Professor/Lecturer: Director of University of Washington School of Law Chinese Contract Litigation Project and Professor of International Contract Negotiation, 1994-2002. Directed University of Washington Training Program for China legal professionals, 1995-2000. Beijing University, School of Law, Lecturer (in Chinese) on United States Law, 1996-1999. First attorney invited to China by an independent Bar Association; Lectured (in Chinese) to Shanghai Bar Association on United States law 1996-1998. Frequent Speaker throughout the United States on various issues relating to International, Chinese, Japanese, and United States law. The International Development Law Organization. Rome, Italy. May 2006.

Author: Chapter on China for "International Corporate Procedures", 2006. Also an ongoing contributor to the China Law Blog at www.chinalawblog.com.

Named: One of Washington State's "5 Most Amazing Attorneys for 2005" by Washington CEO magazine, March, 2006.

Languages: Mandarin Chinese. Written Japanese, some spoken Japanese.

Practice Areas: International and Domestic Corporate and Commercial Law; International and Domestic Intellectual Property Protection and Technology Licensing Law; China Law; China outsourcing Law; Japan Law

(Formerly Chairperson of the International Law Group at Garvey, Schubert & Barer in Seattle)

Born in Herzberg, Germany.

Education: University Alma Mater Lipsiensis Law School, Leipzig, Germany (J.D., 1996); Faculté des Affaires Internationales, Le Havre, France (Diplome d'Études Universitaire Générales in French law, International Public Law, and European Law, 1997); Traineeship in Saarbrücken, Germany and Madrid, Spain (1997 - 1999); Foreign Lawyers' Qualifying Test before the Spanish Ministry of Justice (2000).

Published Articles: "The new LLC in Spain", GmbHRundschau/LLC Review (Germany), January 1, 2003; "Distributor or Commercial Agent for German companies in Spain - Legal Characteristics and Practical Indications", MessTec Automation (Germany), June, 2003, "The New Law about Limited Liability Companies of the People's Republic of China", GmbHRundschau/LLC Review (Germany), March 15, 2006.

Speaking Topics: Distribution Channels in Spain (Spanish Chamber of Commerce, Halle, Germany, 2003).

Member: Licensed to practice law in Germany since 2000, in Spain since 2001, and in Washington state since 2006; Frankfurt, Germany, Bar Association; Barcelona, Spain, Bar Association; American Bar Association; Washington State Bar Association (Secretary of the International Practice Section); German American Lawyers' Association; German Spanish Lawyers' Association; Junior Entrepreneur Association of Barcelona (former President); Women Business Owners (Nellie Committee member); Washington State Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Washington Women Lawyers.

Languages: German, Spanish, English, French, some Catalan.

Practice Areas: International Law, International and Domestic Litigation, International, German and Spanish Business, Commercial, Corporate, and Contract Law.

(Formerly with Monereo, Meyer & Marinel-lo, Barcelona, Spain)

(Also Licensed in Germany and Spain)

Born in Barnaul, Russia

Education: Khabarovsk State Pedagogical University (B.A. in Linguistics and Foreign Languages, 1991),
Khabarovsk, Russia; New College of California School of Law (J.D., 2006), San Francisco, CA.

Languages: Russian, English, some German

Legal/Business Experience: Founded one of the first US-Russian joint ventures, Far East Group, in 1993. Five years as paralegal for a leading Seattle based international law firm. Immigration extern with International Institute of San Francisco, California in 2004.

Practice Areas: Russian Specialist: Russian Law, International Law, International Business, International Business Transactions