Kirk Bernard
About Kirk Bernard
Kirk Bernard has been a civil litigator in Washington and California for over 30 years, focusing on personal injury cases for accident victims. He received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of California at Santa Barbara and graduated from law school in 1981, when he became a licensed personal injury attorney in California. He expanded his practice to Washington state in 1997. Over his career, Kirk has recovered millions of dollars for injured clients, including a record $27 million jury award in a San Francisco Municipal Railway truck crash and a record $18.5 million settlement for a motorcycle rider injured by a dump truck making an illegal U-turn. He holds memberships in the American Bar Association, Washington State Bar Association, Washington State Association for Justice, Consumer Attorneys Association, and the Brain Injury Association of Washington. Kirk has received recognition as an Eagle Member of the Washington Association of Trial Lawyers and holds an Avvo 9.4 Superb Rating. Beyond his legal practice, he has organized children's bicycle helmet giveaways and participates in the Northwest Harvest Food Drive.
Notable case results
A San Francisco jury returned what was then the largest personal-injury verdict ever against the city after a Municipal Railway repair truck ran a red light, struck another vehicle, and jumped a sidewalk, killing a four-year-old girl and injuring three others walking with her.
Scott Bliss suffered catastrophic brain injury when a Scarsella Bros. dump truck made an illegal U-turn on an I-5 WSDOT construction ramp in Centralia, yielding what is believed to be the largest WSDOT settlement in Lewis County history.
A King County Metro bus driver cut a corner short near the Renton Transit Center on March 10, 2021, rolled the rear tires over Jessica Chapel as she lay on the sidewalk, then canceled her own emergency call and left the scene, costing Chapel her leg.
Jury award, City of San Francisco Municipal Railway truck crash that killed a 4-year-old girl and injured others
Parkinson's Disease caused by ingestion of welding rod fumes
(record), motorcycle rider Scott Bliss struck by dump truck making illegal U-turn
Auto accident where defendant fell asleep at the wheel causing quadriplegia
Meisner v. State of Washington, motorcycle accident involving inadequate signs in a highway construction zone with catastrophic injuries
Motorcycle accident caused by a construction defect in the roadway
Automobile accident with defective seat belt causing traumatic brain injury to a minor passenger
74-year-old pedestrian struck by a company truck requiring below-the-knee amputation
Birth injury settlement, hospital and doctor negligence during delivery causing child brain damage
Nelli and Wages v. Wah Kue Cafe, commercial alcohol liability case
Odell v. Wooden Boat Foundation, explosion case involving liquid nails
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each case is unique and depends on its own facts.
