HERRMANN SCHOLBE Accident Attorneys Our hearts go out in sympathy for all victims of this horrific accident. Having spent literally decades representing victims of bus and air crash cases, we know the sense of sorrow, shock and trauma you re experiencing. You have our sincere condolences. We sincerely hope these materials help victims of accident disasters better understand challenges you will face and the assistance you will need to receive just compensation. GENERAL ADVICE Prepared by: HERRMANN SCHOLBE Charles Herrmann John Scholbe Attorneys at Law
Victims of bus and air accidents need advice concerning your legal rights and how they should go about enforcing them. At the outset, you should understand that there are many complex issues presented by any particular case. Whole books have been written on these subjects. It is impossible to provide a complete explanation in just a few pages. Nonetheless, with decades of experience representing literally thousands of injured accident victims, we have learned that certain points are critical in the time frame immediately following an accident such as this one. Victims need good advice and you need it now. MOST IMPORTANT. Disaster accidents such as this one are complicated cases. Many of its aspects are discussed in what follows. However, experience has taught us that victims should be apprised of four (4) things immediately, otherwise your legal claims for compensation can suffer irreversible damage. They are: 1. Do NOT discuss your injuries with representatives of the bus companies or anyone from your insurance company. They may seem sympathetic and helpful, but their work is to protect the bus companies business as well as settle your claim for a relatively low amount; 2. Photograph your physical injuries at the hospital or after discharge. Close ups with a reasonably high quality digital camera are best. Later photos do not accurately reflect how severe the injuries were in the days immediately following the accident. Keep photos you may have of the accident scene. 3. Start a diary/journal in which you record all your suffering both physical and emotional on a daily basis. Keep records of all medical treatment and all expenses you or your family members have incurred as a result of an accident; and, 4. All victims need advice from lawyers not only skilled in personal injury, but also in representing native Asians in U.S. courts. Asian victims will be far better served by lawyers familiar with your cultures. The sooner your lawyers are able to start working on your behalf, the more effective they can be. INVESTIGATION While it is too early to reach firm conclusions, we know the Duck Boat crossed over the center line to crash into a Bellair tour bus traveling in the opposite direction. The Duck 6 driver evidently attempted to change lanes into the left/inside lane closest to the oncoming south bound lanes. It was at this point that he lost control of Duck 6. His vehicle began to slide sideways and crossed over into the southbound lanes where it struck the driver s side of the Bellair tour bus. The roles of the drivers of the Duck boat, the tour bus company, and the other two cars involved must be examined. If there were any mechanical failures, their maintenance and management must also be looked at. Eyewitnesses report that the left front wheel of the Duck Boat malfunctioned. An eyewitness following Duck 6 gave the following description of what he observed: The duck boat was signaling to enter the left lane. As it was making its turn to enter the left lane, it seemed to lurch suddenly. I saw a bunch of smoke and what appeared to be the front, left wheel pop off. It clipped a smaller SUV and basically almost t-boned into the oncoming bus and spun around. Other witnesses said the left front wheel broke off from Duck 6 and that red fluid appeared to coming out of that wheel well. The NTSB spokesperson confirmed that the left front axle had been sheared off, although they could not yet determine whether it was broken prior to, or during, the accident. The Duck Boat is a WWII amphibious landing craft (DUKW) originally designed to deliver troops and supplies from large ships onto beaches as part of military invasions. Duck 6 was 70 years old, manufactured in 1945. It was not originally intended to be driven on crowded urban streets. According to information we have developed, Ride the Duck Page 2 of 4
performs its own maintenance on its fleet of 20 such Duck vehicles and would most likely be held responsible for any mechanical failure on a 70 year old converted landing craft like Duck 6. Critics have also complained that the Duck drivers are assigned too many tasks. They are not only drivers, but they are also function as tour guides entertaining the passengers with describing points of interest and regaling them with anecdotes, folklore and humor. The roadway itself may prove critical. Was it designed properly? Were the lanes too narrow? Should there have been median barriers? The State of Washington is responsible for the roadway. Many times an accident is the result of a combination of errors or failures on the part of multiple parties. It is often not the result of just one cause. In this regard we note that the Aurora Bridge was built 83 years ago (1932) when traffic in Seattle was far lighter. It bears 6 lanes of travel 3 in each direction at a speed limit of 40mph. These lanes are the narrowest of any 6-lane bridge in the state. While the standard lane width is 12 feet, on the Aurora Bridge, the center northbound lane is 9 feet, 3 inches wide. The other lanes on the bridge are 9 feet, 6 inches wide to 9 feet, 8 inches. There is no median barrier to prevent vehicles from accidently crossing over into opposing traffic. Washington Department of Transportation (WDOT) years ago recognized that this stretch of highway has one of the highest rates of accidents in the state. In 2003, WDOT proposed that the sidewalks be placed under the bridge roadway to widen the lanes and to install a median barrier to prevent this kind of accident. Duck 6, the one involved in this accident was refurbished in 2005 with a new GM engine and chassis by Ride the Ducks International the parent company. Further, the NTSB had learned that Ride the Ducks International issued a warning in 2013 about potential axel failure that needed to be repaired or monitored closely. It is unclear if the local franchise Ride the Ducks Seattle received this warning from Ride the Ducks International. This Duck is over 8 feet wide, nearly the width of the lanes. All these questions present lines of inquiry to be pursued in the ongoing investigation. While some of the pertinent facts are already known, a thorough investigation will most likely take several months to a year to complete. However, nearly all of the evidence is being preserved. Videos and/or photos of the actual crash will eventually be available. All causes will be determined once the investigation is completed. COMPENSATION AMOUNT OF COMPENSATION. Issues of the amount of compensation are unique to each individual victim. Survivor s claims involve the nature and extent of their injuries, their pain and suffering, disability, disfigurement, medical bills, loss of income as well as other physical injuries they may have sustained. All victims, whether they sustained severe physical injuries or not, have experienced an intense psychological and emotional trauma that may take them much time to overcome, even with professional counseling. Again, we thoroughly develop and professionally present all aspects of our clients cases. Only then can we properly provide you with a professional evaluation of your individual claim. For the families of those who died, the loss is immeasurable. The loss of love and affection, companionship, support and all other financial losses can amount to substantial sums of money depending upon family relationships, age of the victim, and actual and potential earnings. A great many factors go into calculating the just amount for a particular victim. We will fully prepare each and every aspect of your case, utilizing experts whenever necessary, to maximize your just claim. In previous cases we ve recovered compensation sometimes for as much as several millions of dollars in both survivor and wrongful death claims. You may want to look at our record as to amounts we have been able to recover for victims of disaster accidents. See our Firm Record. However, we want to be clear that past results do not guarantee any particular future recovery for victims in a different accident. Page 3 of 4
INSURANCE MAY NOT BE ADEQUATE. According to law, charter bus companies such as Ride the Duck and Bellair Charters are required to maintain insurance at minimum limits of $5 million or more. According to filings with the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, Bellair has a minimum policy while Ride the Duck has a policy in an unspecified amount that may be over the minimum. That remains to be determined. This horrendous accident may have been entirely Ride the Duck s fault and with all the deaths and catastrophic injuries, $5 million will be woefully in adequate. Such was the case for the many clients we represent who were injured in the Mi Joo Bus Crash. The arbitrator found that total damages of all victims combined was well over $50 million U.S. dollars. Thus, the $10 million Canadian dollars policy limits of the tour bus company was woefully inadequate to fully compensate the victims. Each received less than 20% of their actual arbitration awards. However, we are now prosecuting cases against the State of Oregon for defects in the roadway. We have a lot of work to do before we can be confident in knowing what the final outcome will be in this Duck/Bus accident. We invite all passengers to contact us for a free, personal, and private consultation: Koreans: Julie Hwang - cell: 1-206-409-4611 or email julie@hslawfirm.com Chinese: Holly Li - cell: 1-206-369-8373 or email: holly@hslawfirm.com Charles Herrmann - cell: 1-253-5222 or his email: charles@hslawfirm.com John Scholbe - cell: 1-253-380-5252 or his email: john@hslawfirm.com Page 4 of 4
HERRMANN SCHOLBE Firm Record HERRMANN SCHOLBE has been continuously representing victims of disaster accident cases for the last 30 years. Our record of success speaks for itself. We have recovered over $200 million U.S. dollars for victims. Here is a brief listing of our disaster accident cases since 1983. KAL 007: In 1983 a Soviet MIG shot down Korean Air flight KAL 007 after it had wandered off course deep into Soviet territory during its flight from New York to Seoul, Korea. History records this incident as second closest the USA and the Soviet Union came to starting World War III, behind only the Cuban Missile crisis. After interviewing numerous U.S. law firms, the families of 89 out of the 102 Koreans who died in this disaster chose HERRMANN SCHOLBE to represent them. Charles Herrmann s role in winning the case was portrayed in the HBO movie Tailspin and featured in the book Death of Flight 007. Arrow Air: In 1985, a charter flight of Arrow Air carrying 256 members of the U.S. Army 101 st Airborne Division and crew from Cairo, Egypt to Ft. Campbell, Kentucky in the USA. Shortly after takeoff at the airport in Gander, Newfoundland, Canada the plane crashed and burst into flames, killing everyone aboard. The parents of our only hometown trooper chose us to represent them. KE 801: In 1997, Korean Airlines crashed its flight KE 801 into Nimitz Hill while trying to land at Agana, Guam in bad weather. Approximately half of the passengers survived the initial impact only to burn to death in the ensuing fire. There were a handful of survivors. The victims came together to form a group, selected a committee and elected a chairman. They in turn screened all the U.S. aviation firms until they selected 10 firms to make presentations to all victims. After the presentations were completed, 56 families (over half) chose our firm to represent them. The second biggest group any law firm had was 14. We recovered in excess of $92,000,000.00. dollars. CI 611: In 2002, China Airlines flight CI 611 disintegrated over the Straight of Taiwan during a flight from Taipei, Taiwan to Hong Kong, China. Our investigation revealed that the plane came apart as a result of faulty repairs at the direction of Boeing, the company that had built the plane. All people on board were killed. Like the Koreans, the Taiwanese came together to form a group to interview all the U.S. lawyers interested in representing them. All but a handful of the victims chose our law firm to represent them; recovering in excess of $26 million U.S. CA 129: Also in 2002, China Air flight CA 129 starting in Beijing crashed into a mountain while attempting to land at the Gim Hae airport near Busan, Korea. 86 of the 97 victims who brought suit chose us to represent them. The case was concluded before the Supreme Court of Korea and we obtained a judgment several times the amount that Korean courts have traditionally awarded for wrongful deaths and personal injuries totaling more than $23 Million. NTPS: In 2003, a Korean Air Force Major was selected to attend a highly specialized course at the National Test Pilot School near Rosamond, California. In his first training flight
with an instructor, the plane crashed killing both men. We are particularly proud of the fact that the incident landed on the Korean Air Force Attaché s desk at the Korean Embassy in Washington D.C. where he proceeded to conduct a meticulous survey of U.S. aviation firms. He made the final decision to refer that deceased Major s widow to our firm. We collected $4,000,000.00 for his family. TA 390: In 2008, TACA Airlines flight TA 390 ran off the runway while attempting to land at the airport in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. We have filed the first lawsuit in the USA on behalf of several of our Honduran clients. We now represent a total of 33 victims of this accident including both passengers and people on the ground. In keeping with our firm s tradition, we are first and have the most. Five survivor cases filed in the USA have been settled for as much as $1,750,000.00. The remaining cases are being litigated in Central America. MI JOO BUS CRASH: In December of 2012 the grossly overworked driver a Mi Joo Tour Bus lost control on snow and ice upon the roadway to plummet off a cliff with 45 passengers onboard resulting in 9 deaths and dozens of catastrophically injured victims. Herrmann led all plaintiff attorneys in reaching agreement with the defense to pay their maximum policy limits (C$10 million) and then to submit the question of each victim s damages to a single arbitrator. The total award for our clients was a pro rata share of the C$10 million based upon total combined evaluations of $14,364,389.00. Here is an itemized list of our settlements/awards in previous disaster accident cases: # Flight/Bus Description Settlement/Award 1 KAL 007 42-year-old married businessman $10,000,000.00 3-Feb KAL 007 63-year-old retired man & wife $1,575,000.00 4 KAL 007 44-year-old cruise ship purser $2,275,000.00 8-May KAL 007 34-year-old housewife & 2 children $2,225,000.00 9 KAL 007 19-year-old student $575,000.00 10 KAL 007 20-year-old student $575,000.00 11 KAL 007 32-year-old divorced travel agent $575,000.00 12 KAL 007 44-year-old businessman $3,275,000.00 13-89 KAL 007 (77) - Koreans combined $7,700,000.00 90 Arrow Air 19-year-old single soldier $650,000.00 91 KE 801 52-year-old executive $2,000,000.00 92 KE 801 47-year-old married businessman $2,586,244.79 93 KE 801 60-year-old retired single tax officer $825,000.00 94 KE 801 36-year-old housewife $1,500,000.00 95 KE 801 34-year-old single clinic manager $750,000.00 96 KE 801 38-year-old married school teacher $2,185,000.00 97 KE 801 40-year-old single businessman $1,500,000.00
98 KE 801 23-year-old female college student $825,000.00 99 KE 801 38-year-old single computer tech. $825,000.00 100 KE 801 13-year-old survivor $3,500,000.00 101 KE 801 32-year-old married businessman $2,500,000.00 102 KE 801 45-year-old married businessman $2,000,000.00 103 KE 801 42-year-old married businesswoman $2,600,000.00 104 KE 801 25-year-old single businesswoman $2,500,000.00 105 KE 801 46-year-old lawyer & 9-year-old son $3,000,000.00 106 KE 801 36-year-old married businessman $6,250,000.00 107 KE 801 27-year-old single travel agent $750,000.00 108 KE 801 24-year-old housewife survivor $5,500,000.00 109 KE 801 29-year-old single executive survivor $850,000.00 110 KE 801 18-year-old high school student $850,000.00 111 KE 801 32-year-old single physician $1,700,000.00 112 KE 801 11-year-old student $850,000.00 113 KE 801 38-year-old married executive $1,500,000.00 114 KE 801 27-year-old survivor $2,550,000.00 115 KE 801 24-year-old survivor $3,500,000.00 116 KE 801 26-year-old single technician $750,000.00 117 KE 801 72-year-old widow $750,000.00 118 KE 801 41-year-old married businessman $3,200,000.00 119 KE 801 23-year-old single female model $750,000.00 120 KE 801 42-year-old married businessman $2,375,000.00 121 KE 801 24-year-old female computer tech $4,650,000.00 122-147 KE 801 (26) Partial cases combined $30,000,000.00 148 CI 611 48-year-old restaurateur $3,500,000.00 149 CI 611 57-year-old businessman $3,265,000.00 150-208 CI 611 (59) - Taiwanese combined $26,375,000.00 209-301 CA 129 (86) Koreans Combined $22,360,000.00 302 NTPS 38-year-old Air Force Major $4,000,000.00 303 TA 390 52-year-old Business woman $1,750,00.00 304 TA 390 31-year-old Secretary $300,000.00 305 TA 390 64-year-old Attorney $90,000.00 306 TA 390 46-year-old Construction owner $90,000.00 307 TA 390 55-year-old Government employee $90,000.00 308-320 Mi Joo Bus 13 Victims Combined Evaluation 14,364,389.00 321-332 Mi Joo UIM 11 Victims UIM Settlements 455,000.00 TOTAL $200,185,633.79
OUR LEGAL TEAM President Lyndon B. Johnson congratulates Karl Herrmann on the passage of federal insurance law protecting people from the abuses of insurance companies. Karl Herrmann (1915 1997) founded HERRMANN SCHOLBE in 1950. Karl was first elected to the Washington State Senate in 1956 where he was immediately appointed chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions and Insurance. He later chaired a Special Joint Interim Committee on Insurance that catapulted him to election as the Washington State Insurance Commissioner in 1968. Because of his tough proconsumer stance against insurance companies, the people reelected him in 1972 by such a wide margin that he set the record as the first person in the history of the State of Washington to receive a million votes. Among his many accomplishments, he created Personal Injury Protection (PIP) which is vital to people who have been injured in auto accidents. He also led Washington to become the first state in the nation to create a guaranty fund that pays policy holders when an insurance company goes bankrupt. He was also instrumental in extending medical insurance coverage to chiropractors and to drug and alcohol treatment centers during his tenures in public office. He gained national recognition spearheading national insurance legislation when President Lyndon B. Johnson awarded him the first pen he used to sign new consumer legislation. It is Karl Herrmann s principles in championing the rights of injured people that HERRMANN SCHOLBE is proud to carry on in our practice today. Charles Herrmann is our CEO and senior litigator in our wrongful death and personal injury department. A Vietnam veteran, he left the army a Captain after serving as an Engineer Advisor with the 5 th Vietnamese Ranger Group. Returning home, he won the Dean s Medal for Legal Argument at Gonzaga University School of Law where he graduated in 1975. He began his legal career as a Pierce County Deputy Sheriff serving as an investigator in the White Collar Crime Unit of the Prosecuting Attorney s office. Upon being admitted to the bar he was appointed to a full Deputy Prosecuting Attorney position where he was soon appointed head of a Joint Law Enforcement Task Force addressing juvenile prostitution. In that capacity he was assigned detectives from the Tacoma Police Department and the Pierce County Sheriff s office as well as coordinating action with a Special Investigations Unit in Washington State Patrol and the Military Police at Ft. Lewis and McCord Air Force Base. Their combined efforts resulted in numerous felony pimping convictions of criminals preying on teenage girls. He then went into private practice with his father, where after several years practicing in the criminal defense arena, he moved into the field of wrongful death and personal injury. He assumed the mantle of CEO of our law firm in 1976. Charles gained an international reputation for his part in the litigation that arose out of the controversial shoot down of Korean Air Lines flight KAL 007 by the Soviet Union over Sakhalin Island in 1983. He represented the families of 89 victims. After secret and lengthy negotiations in Korea, Herrmann was able to secure the testimony of another Korean Air Lines 747 pilot - that literally cracked the case against the U.S. Federal Government and KAL. His role was portrayed in the HBO movie Tailspin and featured in the
definitive book on the case Death of Flight 007. He eventually recovered $10 million dollars for one family alone and millions more for the rest of his clients. In the late 90 s Herrmann worked as a volunteer with the Center for Human Rights (Centro Derechos Humanos) in San Cristobal de Las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico where he served as an International Observer for the peace talks between the Mexican government and the Zapatistas as well as in the subsequent national elections, observing the voting process in several villages deep within the Lacandon jungle (La Selva Lacandona). Herrmann then led the firm in recovering in excess of $92 million dollars for 56 families of the victims of the crash of Korean Air flight KE 801 on August 6, 1997 near Agana, Guam. Further, he recovered $4 million dollars for the family of a Korean Air Force Major killed in a tragic accident at the National Test Pilot School in California. He then concluded cases before the Korean courts for 86 victims in the crash of Air China flight CA 129 that crashed while attempting to land at the Gim Hae airport near Busan in the spring of 2002 as Korea hosted the World Cup. At the same time, he successfully represented the families of 62 people killed in the disintegration of China Airlines flight CI 611 over the Straight of Taiwan. Currently, Charles is leading an international team of lawyers representing 33 Hispanic victims of the crash of TACA flight 390 that overshot the runway while attempting to land at Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Five survivor cases filed in the USA, the largest of which settled for $1,750,000.00. The remaining cases are currently being litigated in Honduras or before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Costa Rica. He also successfully represented 13 victims of the crash of the Mi Joo Korean tour bus that plunged over a cliff near Pendleton, Oregon in December of 2012. Finally, he is representing multiple victims of the crash of Asiana flight OZ 214 at San Francisco in July of 2013 before the U.S. District Court in Oakland, California. He is also currently representing numerous victims in the spectacular air crash of Asiana flight OZ 214 at the San Francisco International Airport in the summer of 2013. He has just recently been chosen by the family of Antonio Zambrano-Montes, the individual gunned down by police in Pasco, Washington on February 10, 2015 that gained international attention when the shooting was captured on several cell phone videos. He takes great pride in the firm s tradition of representing the average person, the little guy, against airlines, transportation companies, governments, Lloyds of London, and other giants of the insurance industry. John Scholbe is an owner and the chief litigation attorney for the HERRMANN SCHOLBE Seattle office. John graduated from the University of Washington in 1996 with a Degree in English. He then graduated from Seattle University with a Juris Doctorate Degree in 1999 and accepted a job with the Federal Way Public Defender. After establishing himself as a formidable trial attorney in the criminal defense arena, John joined HERRMANN SCHOLBE to commence practice in the areas of wrongful death and personal injury. John assumed a pivotal role in the recovery for the wrongful death of a Korean Air Force Major against the National Test Pilot School in California and is now working closely with Charles Herrmann on TACA flight TA 390 cases pending in Central America and in which the firm has already recovered millions for several cases brought in the USA. Teamed with Charles, John successfully represented multiple victims severally injured in the Mi Joo Bus Crash case and is now integrally involved in preparing cases on behalf of many Asiana flight attendants who were severely injured in the air crash at San Francisco. Page 2 of 5
His current practice includes wrongful death cases arising out of aviation, bus, admiralty, and auto accidents. Over the last 15 years, he has represented literally hundreds of Korean and Chinese victims of such accidents. Lara Herrmann is an owner and senior attorney at HERRMANN SCHOLBE, spearheading the negotiation and pre-litigation department for both the Seattle and Tacoma offices. A human rights and environmental activist at heart, Lara s passion is the inspirational force behind her ability to champion her clients with integrity and dedication when they have suffered an injury or loss. This passion, combined with her acute knowledge of legal theory and strategy, have provided her with solid expertise in the personal injury field, including motor-vehicle collisions, wrongful death, international aviation disasters, and a variety of other injury cases. Lara has also held leadership positions with Washington Women Lawyers, is the founder and chair of the annual Women of the Year award. She won the Seattle University School of Law Women s Law Caucus First Annual Alumni Service Award in 2005 and has been chosen three times as a Rising Star by Washington Law & Politics, for which only 2.5% of the attorneys in Washington are selected based on peer recognition and professional achievements. Preet Bassi Kode is a zealous advocate for her clients. She was born in India, but raised in Tacoma, Washington. She credits her parents for the support they gave her to become a lawyer in order to help those in need. As such, at a very young age, she felt a strong sense of advocacy, social justice, and a desire to help those in need, so she spent much of her time volunteering at soup kitchens, hospitals, and senior centers. Preet attended the UW where she earned a BA in Spanish while also taking all pre-med classes. She then took a position with a personal injury law firm in Philadelphia. She quickly realized personal injury law was her calling. It was a natural fit for her personality and education. Her commitment was made. She then went back school to. She earned not only her J.D. at Widener University School of Law, concentrating in Health Law, but also a Masters Degree in Public Health from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. While in law school, Preet helped victims. She also interned with the Public Defender and the regional office of Health and Human Services, while participating in trial competitions, honing her litigation and advocacy skills. Currently, Preet is our Senior Associate Attorney, working in our litigation department. Preet has arbitrated many, settled hundreds, and secured hundreds of thousands of dollars for our clients. She fluent in multiple languages including Spanish, Hindi and Punjabi. Crystal R. Lloyd is an associate attorney in our firm. Crystal graduated from the UW receiving a B.S. in Psychology and a B.A. in Anthropology. She then received her J.D from Seattle University law school where she graduated cum laude, received two CALI Excellence for the Future Awards, and received the Pro Bono Pledge Award. While a student at Seattle University School of Law, Crystal served as Secretary for the Student Bar Association, Vice President of Phi Alpha Delta, and President/Co-founder of the Trusts, Estates and Elder Law Student Association. After graduating from law school, Crystal served as a judicial clerk to the Chief Judge Theresa Pouley, at Tulalip Tribal Court. She assisted the tribe in updating their domestic violence statutes and applying to become one of the first tribes to exercise special domestic violence criminal jurisdiction under the Violence Against Women Act (2013). Page 3 of 5
Crystal has always had strong passion for helping individuals and groups struggling against powerful organizations to obtain justice. This passion drives Crystal to aggressively pursue insurance companies to obtain just compensation for our clients. Anthony Marsh is dedicated to fighting for the rights of injured people against those who harmed them. He is a fourth generation Washingtonian with deep ties to the area, and a love for the Pacific Northwest. Because he is the son of a Naval Officer, he moved all over the country growing up. But when he decided to go to law school, he chose to come back to Seattle. He started at the Seattle University School of Law, where he placed in the top ten percent of his class. Then, he transferred to the UW School of Law, where he graduated with grades in the top five percent of his class, earning admission into the prestigious Order of the Coif honors society. In law school, he also represented ordinary people in the Workers Rights Clinic, helping laid off workers with their unemployment compensation appeals, and recovering withheld wages on behalf of construction workers. So far in his career, Anthony has secured dozens of great settlements for his clients. For those times when a settlement cannot be reached, he doggedly pursues the opposing party through litigation. He is particularly proud to have helped Seattle s minority communities, who are frequently discriminated against by insurance companies. Julie Hwang Herrmann (Hwang, Sun-Ah) Our Korean Paralegal was born in Korea. She immigrated to the United States when she was 12 years old. She attended Shorecrest High School in Seattle and then graduated from the UW earning a B.S. in Psychology in 1986. After graduation, she first worked as a legal assistant for 3 years in a law firm in Los Angeles. She then returned to Seattle where she joined the HERRMANN SCHOLBE law firm in 1990. Because she is fluent in both English and Korean, she was immediately assigned to cases involving the families of 89 victims of the 1983 shoot down of Korean Airlines flight KAL 007 by the Soviet military over Sakhalin Island. Julie provided all in-house interpretation, worked closely with each of our clients in answering all interrogatories and in responding to requests for production of documents and in preparing the clients for their depositions. Subsequently, Julie worked in a similar role for: 56 victims of the crash of Korean Airlines flight KE 801 that occurred near the airport at Agana, Guam, on August 6, 1997; 86 victims of the crash of Air China flight CA 129 near Gim Hae in 2000; the Mi Joo bus crash that occurred near Pendleton, Oregon in 2012; and, is now working in the same capacity for numerous victims of the crash of Asiana flight OZ 214 at San Francisco in the summer of 2013. In these cases Julie s role as a paralegal expanded to include responsibility for coordinating the exchange of information with experts such as the victims physicians and psychologists, together with CPAs and economists, and cultural experts retained by the firm. Combined with her 28 years of experience as a paralegal, Julie s sensitivity and careful attention to each of our clients won their trust, confidence, and respect. Much of our firm s success in these disaster cases is directly attributable to Ms. Hwang s efforts. Holly Li (Li, Hong-Yan) serves as our Chinese paralegal in our Seattle office. Born in the Peoples Republic of China, she attended Guangxi Normal University at Guilin, China, where she earned her B.A. in English Literature in 1982. She then taught high school English for 2 years. Page 4 of 5
She then attended the School of Law at the Shanghai Foreign Trade Institute where she received her law degree in 1986 majoring in international economics law. Holly then practiced law for four years in Liuzhou, China. She was one of the first lawyers in all of China to specialize in foreign trade and economics. She earned the trust and respect of numerous clients as she represented them in cases involving bank loan and real estate disputes, contract negotiations and divorces. She and her husband immigrated to Seattle in the U.S. in 1990, where she cross-trained herself by earning an Associates of Arts degree as a paralegal from Edmonds Community College. She then launched her American law career as a legal assistant in a U.S. law firm. She joined the Herrmann Law Firm in mid-2001 where she was soon promoted to Chinese Community Representative functioning as a paralegal in the area of wrongful death and personal injury for the firm s local Chinese client base. She is currently handling complex cases involving multiple deaths and injuries arising out of air disasters, admiralty, and auto accidents. Holly is fluent in English and Chinese including the Mandarin, Cantonese, Shanghai and Taishan dialects. Page 5 of 5