Robert C. Manlowe

Bob Manlowe is a Member in Williams Kastner’s Seattle office. His practice involves Complex Litigation Management, ESI/e-Discovery consultation services, Crisis Management and Media Relations.

Mr. Manlowe serves as National Coordinating Counsel for clients involved in mass tort cases. In addition, Mr. Manlowe provides consultation services to numerous companies in the areas of complex litigation management and ESI/e-Discovery. Mr. Manlowe’s experience in Crisis Management ranges from catastrophic incident response to high profile sports figure firing, to software piracy, as well as the resulting governmental and media investigations of these and many other matters. He currently serves on the Crisis Management Teams for several companies in the product manufacturing, construction and industrial sectors. Mr. Manlowe collaborates with his clients as their trusted advisor to set up high performance teams and is a leader in the use of technology systems to ensure the cost effective management of their claims.

Mr. Manlowe is the immediate past chair of Williams Kastner’s Product Litigation and Mass Torts Practice Group and chairs the ESI/e-Discovery Consulting Services Team. He served on the Board of Directors for the International Association of Defense Counsel (“IADC”) from 2005-2008. Mr. Manlowe founded the IADC’s ESI/e-Discovery Task Force and designed the IADC’s ESI/e-Discovery strategic initiative. In addition, Mr. Manlowe serves on the Lawyers for Civil Justice (“LCJ”) e-Discovery Committee. As further demonstration of his leadership, Mr. Manlowe, as the co-chair of the Washington Construction Safety Task Force, brought labor, management and government leaders together to develop the “Safety Plus” pilot program for the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries and OSHA. He also co-authored the nationally recognized training video, “Safety on Trial.” As a result of his achievements, Mr. Manlowe received the President’s Award from the Associated General Contractors of Washington and the Washington State Governor’s Construction Safety Award.

Mr. Manlowe’s expertise also extends to the design and development of custom extranets and e-document repositories for cost effective national case management and document management. In addition, he has created numerous “cutting edge” demonstrative exhibits through the use of state-of-the-art computer technologies.

• International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC)
  • Board of Directors, 2005 – 2008
  • Chair, Seattle Regional Meeting, April 2005
  • Chair, IADC Resource Committee, 2000 – 2004
  • Faculty member, IADC Trial Academy, 2003
  • Chair, IADC Computer Technology Committee, 2000 – 2001
  • Chair, IADC Construction and Litigation Committee, 1998 – 1999
• Member, Lawyers for Civil Justice E-Discovery Committee, 2005 – present
• President, Overlake Golf & Country Club, Medina, WA, 2000 – 2001
• Consultant, Seattle Aquarium Charity Golf Tournament, 2001 – 2003
• Chair, Harborview Classic Charity Golf Tournament, 1996 – 1999 (raised over $300,000 for Harborview Hospital)

• Top Rated Lawyer in Mass Torts, presented by Legal Leaders, 2013
• President’s Award for Affiliate Member of the Year, presented by the Associated General Contractors of Washington, 1996 Annual Meeting
• Governor’s Award for service in the construction industry, presented by the Governor of Washington State, Washington Construction Safety Day, 1996
• Distinguished Service Award, presented by Seattle Vicinity Construction Safety Council, 1995 Awards Ceremony
• Safety Professional of the Year, Nominee, Seattle Vicinity Construction Safety Council, 1995
• Award of Appreciation presented by Master Builder’s Association, 1995

Seattle University
J.D., cum laude, 1984

Princeton University
BSE in Civil Engineering, 1981

• Co-Speaker, “EPA, Regulatory and Governmental Developments Under Current Administration, and Countering Same” 2021 Defense Research Institute (DRI) Asbestos Medicine Seminar, New Orleans, LA, November 4, 2021
• Co-Speaker/Moderator, “Best Practices for Building a Complete Defense Team for Mass Tort Litigation, Including Coordinated Discovery, Phased Trial Groups and Court-Ordered Settlement Phases”, 2018 USLAW Fall Network Client Conference, Montréal, QC, September 8, 2018.
• Co-Speaker, “Severe Violator Enforcement Program & State Decisions” AGC Safety Forum, Seattle, WA, January 4, 2018
• Co-Speaker, “Inspection Protocol Panel” Annual Washington State Governor’s Conference – Tacoma, WA, September 19, 2017
• Co-Speaker/Moderator, “Cutting Edge Strategies / Best Practices for Avoiding Litigation Traps” 2017 USLAW Fall Network Client Conference – Carlsbad, CA,  September 8, 2017
• Moderator, “How to Compete in the World of e-Discovery and ESI Management” IADC Joint Law Firm Management Conference, Chicago, IL, May 14, 2015.
• Moderator, “Navigating the Stormy Waters of Cyber Security: Do not be afraid!” IADC Corporate Counsel College, Chicago, IL, April 10, 2014.
• Moderator, “Law Office 2020 – See The Future Today!” IADC Midyear Meeting, Carlsbad, CA, February 11, 2014.
• Speaker, “Crisis Management in the 21st Century, from Catastrophic Incident Response to Cyber Information Breaches,” Oregon Governor’s Occupational Safety & Health (GOSH) Conference, Portland OR, March 6, 2013.
• Moderator, “Cloudy Days Ahead: Cloud Computing and Litigation,” IADC Annual Meeting, Asheville, NC, July 11, 2012.
• Co-Moderator, “Presenting Your Case With a Tablet” IADC Regional Meeting, Seattle, WA, May 22, 2012.
• Co-Speaker, “Linear ‘No Threshold’ Model of Asbestos Disease Causation: How to Defeat or Exclude,” IADC Midyear Meeting, Rancho Mirage, CA, February 14, 2012.
• Co-Speaker, “The Effective Use of Courtroom Technology,” IADC Annual Meeting, Whistler, BC, July 12, 2011.
• Co-Speaker, “Cutting-edge Techniques for Providing Your Clients with Cost-effective Services,” USLAW Spring Client Conference, Phoenix, AZ, April 2, 2011.
• Co-Speaker, “Tech Wars: Are you ready to rumble?” IADC Midyear Meeting, Pebble Beach, CA, February 22, 2011.
• Moderator, “Crisis Management – Head ‘em off at the pass!,” 2010 AGC Safety & Health Council, Wilsonville, OR, June 10, 2010.
• Speaker/Moderator, “Cutting Edge Techniques for Building Maximum Leverage for Settlement or Trial,” Resolute Management Lunchtime Training Seminar Spring 2010, Philadelphia, PA, May 27, 2010.
• Speaker, “Money The Root of All Evil (Cutting-Edge Techniques for Management of Complex Litigation),” USLAW Spring 2010 Client Conference, Fontainebleau Hotel, Miami Beach, FL, April 15-17, 2010.
• Speaker, “Effective Use of Demonstrative Exhibits in Toxic Cases”, IADC Webinar, April 14, 2010.
• Speaker, “IADC Social Media: Where Do I Begin?” Webinar, March 11, 2010.
• Speaker, “10 Common Pitfalls in E-Discovery and Document Review,” IADC Midyear Meeting, Naples Grand Beach Resort, Naples, FL, February 13-18, 2010.
• Moderator, “Managing Your E-Discovery Costs: Who’s Doing It and How?”, 2009 IADC Counsel Corporate Counsel College, International Association of Defense Counsel, Chicago, IL, April 23, 2009.
• Co-Presenter, “An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure,” Williams Kastner Electronic Information Management Seminar, Seattle, WA, January 28, 2009.
• Co-Presenter, “An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure,” Williams Kastner Electronic Information Management Seminar, Seattle, WA, December 10, 2008.
• Facilitator, “Presenting to Win: Effective Use of PowerPoint in the Courtroom,” IADC Annual Meeting, Fairmont Southampton, Bermuda, July 2007.
• Speaker, “Disaster Preparedness Crisis Management,” ABD, Seattle, WA, May 2007.
• Speaker, “Using Courtroom Technology in Thurston County and Pierce County,” Government Lawyers Bar Association presentation, Department of Social and Health Services, Olympia, WA, May 2007.
• Speaker, “PowerPoint Workshop – A Hands on Experience for Trial Lawyers,” IADC Midyear Meeting, Pebble Beach, CA, February 2007.
• Speaker, “Use of Technology in the Courtroom,” IADC Trial Academy, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA, August 2005.
• Speaker, “21st Century Approaches to Using Your Company Witness as a Sword in Class Action and Mass Tort Litigation,” IADC Annual Meeting, Colorado Springs, CO, July 2005.
• Speaker, “The Asbestos Crisis: How to Survive in an Ever-Changing Climate,” IADC Midyear Meeting, Pebble Beach, CA, February 2003.
• Speaker, “National Coordinating Counsel: Challenges and Opportunities, The Use of Cutting-Edge Technologies in Managing National Litigation,” IADC, Annual Convention, Whistler, Canada, July 2002.
• Speaker, “Designing & Implementing a Discovery Plan in E-Commerce Litigation,” Defense Research Institute (DRI), Technology Litigation Seminar, Chicago, IL, December 2001.
• Speaker, “Accident Investigation & Crisis Management,” Baugh Enterprises, Seattle, WA, October 2001.
• Speaker, “Best Discovery Practices: Setting Up the Electronic Document Retention Program,” DRI, Electronic Discovery Seminar, Chicago, IL, February 2001.
• Speaker, “Construction Law and the Magic of Indemnity and Additional Insurance,” Edmonds Community College, Edmonds, WA, 1999.
• Speaker, “Cutting Edge Computer Technologies for the Trial Attorney,” IADC, Mid-Year Meeting, La Quinta, CA, February 2001.
• Speaker, “Law Office 2010 (see the Future Today),” IADC, Annual Meeting, Greenbriar, WV, July 2000.
• Speaker, “Crisis Management: Are You Ready?,” Approach Management Presentation, SMART Dream Team RETRO meeting, Seattle, WA, June 2000.
• Speaker, “Accident Investigation – Techniques that Can Make or Break Your Company,” Associated General Contractors of Washington meeting, Tacoma, WA, March 2000.
• Speaker, “The New Wave of the 21st Century – Emergency Response, Crisis Management  and Loss Prevention: Head ‘Em Off at the Pass,” IADC, Annual Meeting, Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, January 2000.
• Speaker, “The Effective Use of PowerPoint in the Trial of a Case,” IADC, Annual Meeting, Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, July 1999.
• Speaker, “Construction Law and the Magic of Indemnity and Additional Insurance,” Edmonds Community College, Edmonds, WA, 1999.
• Speaker, “Expert Discovery: What Is and Isn’t Protected by the Attorney-Client or Work Product Privilege and How to Make or Break Your Case,” IADC Annual Meeting, La Jolla, CA, July 1998.
• Speaker, “Demonstrative Evidence and the Use of Video Laser Disk Technology in Accident Reconstruction,” Pacific Northwest Aviation Law Seminar, October 1994.

• Co-Author, “Literature Refuting Single-Fiber Theory and Zero-No-Threshold/Linear-Dose Model,” February 2012.
• Co-Author, “Paradigm Shifts in e-Discovery Litigation: Cooperate or Continue to Pay Dearly,” IADC Defense Counsel Journal, April 1, 2011.
• Co-Author, “An Inconvenient Forum – Reining In E-Discovery In the United States,” The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, February 2011.
• Co-Author, “Paradigm Shifts in E-Discovery Litigation: Cooperate or Continue to Pay Dearly,” IADC Defense Counsel Journal, November 2010.
• Co-Author, “Cutting-Edge Approaches for Managing Mass Tort Litigation in the New Millennium,” June 2005.
• Co-Author, “Use of Technology in the Courtroom,” May 2005.
• Published Article, Successor Liability in Washington, 6 University of Puget Sound L. Rev., 323 (1983), cited and approved as authoritative by both the Washington Court of Appeals and the Washington Supreme Court.