An accomplished personal injury lawyer and national expert in foodborne illness litigation, William Marler, editor of Food Poison Journal, has been a major force in food safety policy in the United States and abroad. He and his partners at Marler Clark have represented thousands of individuals in claims against food companies whose contaminated products have caused serious injury and death. Bill’s advocacy for better food regulation has led to invitations to address local, national and international gatherings on food safety, including recent testimony to US Congress Committee on Energy and Commerce. Marler Clark is considered the nation’s foremost law firm representing victims of foodborne illness and other serious personal injuries.

received his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Washington in 1999 and his Juris Doctor degree in 2002 from Seattle University School of Law, where he graduated with honors. In January 2004, Drew joined Marler Clark as its second litigation associate. Since joining the firm, he has concentrated his practice in the areas of products liability and general personal injury suits.

In 1993, Bruce Clark became involved in foodborne illness litigation as an attorney for Jack in the Box restaurants in its E. coli O157:H7 personal injury litigation. The Jack in the Box litigation spanned more than four years and involved more than 100 lawsuits in four states. Since that time, Bruce has been continuously involved in food and waterborne illness litigation involving bacterial, viral, and parasitic agents in settings ranging from large scale outbreaks to individual cases. He has extensive expertise in the medical, microbiological, and epidemiological aspects of foodborne illness cases gleaned from more than a decade of working with leading experts across the country. He also possesses practical insight into the functioning of corporations and their insurers.

Patti Waller joined Marler Clark law firm in 2003 after working for twelve years in the Communicable Disease Program at the Washington State Department of Health.  At the health department, Patti investigated food and water borne illnesses and outbreaks.  She conducted food safety training courses, focusing on best epidemiologic practices in outbreak investigations.  At Marler Clark Patti uses her expertise to develop protocol, screen potential clients, and gather evidence for successful litigation.A frequent speaker, Patti appreciates the opportunity to serve as a liaison between the legal world and public health.  She earned a Masters of Science degree in Epidemiology at the University of Washington in 1990.

Denis Stearns is one of the founding partners of the Marler Clark law firm, which is the nation’s preeminent law firm focusing solely on the representation of persons injured by unsafe food products. Denis got his start handling food cases as one of the lead defense attorneys for Jack in the Box. He is a frequent speaker on food safety issues, particularly those involving the history, economics, and politics of food law.  He is a visiting professor of law at Seattle University.

Josh Fensterbush is an Associate at Marler Clark who has worked on a variety of cases involving E. coli, hepatitis A, salmonella, and Listeria outbreaks. His work regularly involves researching critical litigatory issues, drafting pleadings and motions, conducting discovery matters, and participating in mediations and trial preparation. Before joining the firm, Josh served as a legal extern to Commissioner Kanazawa at Division 1 of the Washington State Court of Appeals, as a local Casework Coordinator for the International Refugee Assistance Project, and was also appointed Research & Technical Editor of the Seattle University Law Review during his time in law school.

Jenny joined Marler Clark in August 2018. Before joining us, she served as a judicial clerk for Associate Chief Justice Charles W. Johnson of the Washington State Supreme Court. While in law school, Jenny was a legal extern for Judge Beth Andrus in King County Superior Court and worked with organizations such as the ACLU of Washington and the Washington Appellate Project. She speaks fluent Spanish and worked in immigration defense before law school. Jenny graduated from Seattle University School of Law, magna cum laude, in 2017. She also has a B.A. with honors in history from Lewis & Clark College. Outside of work, she enjoys playing music and doing anything outdoors, especially if she can take her dog with her.