• Share
  • Email
  • Print

Thomas H. Wolfendale

Of Counsel
+1.206.370.8386
Fax +1..206.370.6211
In 39 years as an attorney, Mr. Wolfendale's civil and criminal counseling and litigation practice in state and federal courts includes construction contracts and projects, environmental civil and criminal matters, municipal governance, and land use issues.  He has represented public and private owners and corporations, developers, architects, engineers, general contractors and subcontractors, and private citizens' groups as plaintiffs and defendants in construction, environmental, governance and land use disputes.  Mr. Wolfendale has served as chair of the Uniform Contracts, Rules and Regulations Subcommittee of the Washington State Bar Association Section on Public Procurement and Contract Law, currently serves as the Chair-elect of the Washington State Bar Association Construction Law Section and was an executive board member of both the Environmental and Land Use Law and Public Procurement and Private Construction Law Sections of the Washington State Bar Association.  He has lectured on the subjects of public procurement, construction law, environmental and land use law before attorneys' organizations and private business groups.

Professional Background

Mr. Wolfendale was a senior deputy prosecuting attorney for 10 years in the civil and criminal divisions of the King County Prosecutor's Office, where he represented King County in criminal, tort, employment law and construction matters.  Since 1981, he has been in private practice with firms whose practices have included public and private clients engaged in large and complex private and public construction and environmental activities.  His work has ranged from the conception of a project  through to completion, including consideration of environmental issues and regulatory review, project delivery system selection, procurement methods, contract drafting, construction counseling, resolution of construction disputes and municipal governance.  Mr. Wolfendale also brings, from public and private sector litigation practice, experience with cases involving products liability, employment discrimination and toxic torts.  In addition to litigating matters before courts and administrative agencies, he has served as an arbitrator and mediator for the American Arbitration Association, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington and for private parties, while counseling and assisting clients on the effective use of alternative dispute resolution processes to successfully conclude problems.

Achievements

Tom is recognized as a “Super Lawyer“ by the Washington Law & Politics publication for his work in construction and environmental law.

Construction Law
Tom Wolfendale has advised public and private owners on construction contracting issues since 1976. While a senior deputy prosecuting attorney for King County, he provided project and day-to-day advice to the County Department of Architecture, which oversaw all county capital projects with the exception of roadbuilding. Tom entered private practice in 1981 and has practiced with firms, whose clients have been involved in large and complex private and public construction projects. Since joining Preston Gates in 1988, Tom has represented the Renton School District, the Steilacoom Historical School District, the Riverview School District, the King County School Coalition, Pierce County, the Municipality of Metropolitan Seattle, the City of Yakima, the City of Centralia, Clackamas County in Oregon, the Pacific Hospital Public Development Authority, the Bellevue Convention Center, the Seattle Chinatown International District Public Development Authority, Pierce Transit, Sound Transit and the Washington State Major League Baseball Stadium Public Facilities District in matters ranging from project delivery system selection to contract drafting and negotiation to procurement issues and dispute resolution (during and post-construction), including mediation, arbitration and trial. Tom serves as arbitrator and mediator in construction disputes, both privately and as a member of the American Arbitration Association and has served on a dispute resolution board for the expansion on the Washington State University, Vancouver Campus.

Environmental Law
Tom Wolfendale's civil and criminal counseling and litigation practice in state and federal courts includes construction contracts and projects, environmental civil and criminal matters, and land use issues. He has represented public and private owners and corporations, developers, architects, engineers, general contractors and subcontractors, and private citizens' groups in construction, environmental and land use disputes. He has served as chair of the Uniform Contracts, Rules and Regulations Subcommittee of the Washington State Bar Association Section on Public Procurement and Contract Law, and was an executive board member of both the Environmental and Land Use Law and Public Procurement and Private Construction Law Sections of the Washington State Bar Association. He has lectured on the subjects of construction law, and environmental and land use law before attorneys' organizations and private business groups. He has been recognized as a "Super Lawyer" by the Washington Law & Politics publication for his work in construction and environmental law.

Tom was a senior deputy prosecuting attorney for 10 years in the civil and criminal divisions of the King County Prosecutor's Office, including representation of the King County Airport. He also brings to the firm, from public and private sector litigation practice, experience with cases involving products liability, employment discrimination and toxic torts. In addition to litigating matters before courts and administrative agencies, he serves as an arbitrator and mediator for the American Arbitration Association, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, the King County Superior Court and for private parties, while counseling and assisting clients on the effective use of alternative dispute resolution processes to successfully conclude problems.

Presentations and Speeches
  • "Criminal and Civil Enforcement and Company Response," presented to the Association of Washington Business Environmental Management & Compliance in the Real World seminar, June 2, 1998

Examples of Environmental Law Practice

  • Representation of vegetable processing corporation in toxic tort groundwater contamination case
  • Representation of former operators of site against claims from new owners regarding responsibility for site cleanup
  • Representation of corporation in permitting and opening of regional landfill
  • Representation of dairy farms in citizen suits under the Clean Water Act
  • Representation of fruit processing facility in acquiring water (NPDES) permits
  • Representation of city in citizen suit under the Clean Water Act
  • Representation of waste hauler in CERCLA Superfund cleanup case
  • Representation of private corporation in chlorine spill case
  • Representation of corporation and corporate president in federal criminal environmental prosecution
  • Representation of pulp and paper corporation in state air discharge permit case
  • Representation of pulp and paper corporation in toxic tort formaldehyde exposure cases
  • Representation of municipality in achieving permits for waste-to-energy incinerator
  • Representation of private incinerator corporation in air permit proceedings
  • Representation of private asphalt manufacturing corporation in air emission violation cases
  • Representation of public water and transit authority in cleanup action of sewage waste treatment facility
  • Representation of a beef processing facility in groundwater and air emission cases