About our Personal Injury Practice & Steven E. Knapp
Steven Knapp is experienced in the following areas:
- Auto Accidents
- Serious Personal Injury
- Wrongful Death Claims
- Motorcycle Accidents
- Truck Accidents
- Bicycle Accidents
- Trip and Falls
- State of Washington Bar, 1987
- Washington State Supreme Court, 1989
- U.S. District Court Western District of Washington, 1988
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Washington, 2002
- University of Oregon School of Law, 1987, J.D.
- Special Certificates of Completion in Natural Resources and Ocean and Coastal Law
- University of Washington, 1977, B.A., Major: History
- Washington State Bar Association
- Washington Association For Justice (WSAJ)
- Snohomish County Bar Association
Reported cases include the following:
State v. Smith, 66 Wn. App. 825, 832 P.2d 1366 (1992)
(First reported case in Washington to admit a facsimile document into evidence)
State v. Walton, 67 Wn. App. 127, 834 P.2d 624 (1992)
Unreported cases include the following:
Premier Designs v. NW Cascade, Court of Appeals Div. II, Cause Number 30525-9-II (2006)
Kriel v. Lee, Court of Appeals Div. I, Cause Number 57745-0-I (2007)
- Appointed as Special Prosecutor for San Juan County (1995)
- In-house seminar regarding tips for settling claims of minor children (2013)
- Article — Motorcycles and the art of being conspicuous to avoid accidents, by Steve Knapp, 8/8/14
- Article — Jury questions during civil trial are a valuable tool for attorneys, by Steve Knapp 8/12/14
- Article — Pre-litigation loans can be disastrous for your personal injury client! by Steve Knapp 1/21/14
- Article — What is the value of your pet's life if negligently injured or killed? Under the law, almost nothing! by Steve Knapp 10/16/13
- Article — Tribal Law and Personal Injury Claims, by attorney Steve Knapp 7/15/13
2006 – current
President and Member of Neighborhood Association, Board of Directors.
2000 – 2003
Board of Directors, Friends of the Cedar River Watershed. Helped fund construction of a Regional Education Center that provides an educational forum for more than 30,000 students annually.
Hobbies
Skiing, bicycle riding, kayaking, running, fruit tree grafting and home remodeling.
Meet Steve Knapp, a successful personal injury lawyer with 30+ years of experience.
I am a lifelong resident of the Greater Seattle region. My family moved here in the 1880’s, even before Washington was a state. My great-great grandfather brought his family west in a covered wagon from Illinois on the Oregon Trail. He became the U.S. Marshall in Salem, Oregon, and was later the first Chief of Police in Spokane. My other great grandparents emigrated here and homesteaded in east King County. They were a hard-working family of dairy farmers and loggers.
I am a third-generation attorney, raised in a family that values hard work. Throughout my 30+ years of personal injury law experience, my goal for every case is to get the best results possible for my clients. I have handled seven figure wrongful death and serious personal injury claims, premises and products liability cases, all types of motor vehicle accidents, and construction site injury cases. I have been a solo and/or lead attorney on more than 40 jury and bench (judge) trials and more than 150 arbitrations and mediations. I have served as an Arbitrator and Settlement Guardian Ad Litem in King County.
My background includes criminal prosecutions as a deputy prosecuting attorney, as well as experience prosecuting and defending civil litigation. Both jobs require considerable amounts of jury trial work, and as a result, I am fully able and prepared to take every case to trial, to deliver the best possible results in cases where opposing counsel is unreasonable or uncooperative in agreeing to an appropriate settlement. My preferred approach to litigation is to try to work cooperatively with opposing counsel. However, I have the experience to take a case from inception all the way through a jury trial and to the Court of Appeals, if necessary.
While this trial experience is crucial in reaching favorable verdicts, most cases settle prior to trial. I learned long ago that being cordial and professional is the most effective way to get the best results for my clients. I am approachable and available to my clients and all parties associated with my cases, but I am a tough and driven negotiator during litigation.
Client Reviews
I’m writing to highly endorse attorney Steve Knapp for you or your loved ones who may be seriously injured or killed by the acts of another person. Steve spent 3 ½ years helping me through a very stressful and difficult process of settling my serious and permanent injury claims with the State Department of Transportation and its contractor after I crashed my motorcycle in a construction zone one night on I-5. I’m very lucky that Steve got involved in my case early on. Steve immediately began gathering evidence to support my claim that the onramp had been left in a negligent condition which caused me to crash that night. Steve kept telling me that the facts of my case were like “spokes in a wheel” and his goal was to build me a wheel full of spokes, which he did do. The State and its contractor denied any responsibility to me for more than three years after my accident. They claimed the accident was entirely my fault or someone else’s fault other than theirs. But Steve was relentless and left no stone unturned in working up my case. He went to the DOT archives and found great records for my case; he investigated the accident scene; and he located and met with several witnesses and got written statements from them in support of my case. I was able to sit in on a few depositions of witnesses, and watching Steve was great. He was very prepared for each one, and he seemed to almost know what each witness would say, even before they said it. He was able to use the witness’ testimony to build lots of spokes in my wheel. Steve used to do defense work and he knows how the defense looks at a case, which I think gives him an edge because he can anticipate where the defense witnesses will attack his clients’ cases and he can prepare for it. Steve had me fully prepared for my own deposition by the defense attorney and for my examination by the defense doctor. Steve finally overwhelmed the DOT and its contractor with evidence that their negligence caused my accident, and we were ultimately able to reach a settlement of very high six figures. Steve is a down to earth kind of guy who is very easy to talk to. He kept in regular contact with me so I always knew what was going on with my case. I’m extremely happy with the work Steve did for me on my case and I give him my highest recommendation to anyone who has been seriously hurt or even killed by someone else’s negligence.
— Client JN
Comment from PI Client
Steve was absolutely amazing. I would recommend Steve to anyone who was looking for a personal injury lawyer. He was so incredibly trustworthy and diligent. Once I found him I did not have to worry about a thing. I knew I could trust his advice and to get everything taken care of.
— Client LR
Comment from PI Client
Thank you once again for your professionalism every step of the way. You guys are definitely worth 5 stars; I will recommend you to anyone without any reservations. My best wishes to you and your families.
— Client RW
Comment from PI Client
Steve Knapp did a great job representing me after I was involved in a car accident on I-5. I called him soon after my accident and I am very happy that I did. He explained the process of how I could make a recovery for all of my damages in clear and easy to understand language. Steve checked in with me regularly to see how my medical treatment was going and I felt like he was with me throughout the entire case. After about 1 ½ years I finished my medical treatment and was ready to settle my claims. Steve took care of all the negotiations with the insurance company adjuster and after several letters and telephone calls, he was able to reach a settlement for all of my claims. I was very happy with the settlement offer he was able to obtain from the insurance company. I highly recommend Steve Knapp as your attorney if you are injured. I also strongly suggest that you call him as soon as possible after your accident to relieve your stress and peace of mind.
— Client MM
Comment from PI Client
I can't thank you and Michele enough for all your help and a huge thank you to you Steve for taking my case and handling it with care as this was really a tough time for me. You are a class act and I will highly recommend you.
— Client MD
Comment from PI Client
Thank you so much. I hope you know that I will be referring everyone I know to your office as well as using you again in the future if I got into another accident.
— Client JB
Comment from PI Client
My son was bitten on the face by a pit bull dog. My husband was serving in the Military in Iraq at the time, and we needed help with our claim. The first attorney I hired was nice, but was not aggressive in representing my son’s interests. Later, Steve Knapp took charge of my son’s case and he was able to double the “final” offer obtained by our previous attorney to settle my son’s claims. Steve Knapp did a great job on my son’s case and I strongly recommend him as an attorney. Steve is very experienced and knowledgeable about the law and was a champion for my son’s claims. But Steve is also a very nice guy, who was easy to talk to and he contacted me regularly to keep me updated with the status of my son’s case. I am happy to give Steve my highest recommendation.