Gwendolyn C. Payton

Shareholder | Seattle | 206.223.7746 | paytong@lanepowell.com

Areas of Practice

Gwendolyn Payton is the chair of the Class Action Practice Group and focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation, class actions, intellectual property, antitrust and trade litigation. She has an active trial practice in state and federal courts, and regularly argues appeals in state and federal court. Gwendolyn is also the chair of Lane Powell’s Hiring Committee, as well as chair of the Firm’s Pro Bono Committee for the Seattle office. She is a recognized speaker on a variety of issues and has spoken internationally on e-commerce and other legal issues. Gwendolyn has been named as a “Washington Rising Star” every year since 2001 by Super Lawyers magazine and was also named one of the “Forty under 40” by Puget Sound Business Journal.

Admitted to Practice

Alaska
Washington
District Court, Western District of Washington
District Court, Eastern District of Washington
District Court, Northern District of Illinois
District Court, District of Oregon
District Court, District of Alaska
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
United States Supreme Court

Academics

University of Michigan Law School (J.D., 1996)
University of Chicago (B.A., 1994)

Practice Group and Specialty Team Memberships

Member, Lane Powell Board of Directors
Chair, Lane Powell Class Action Defense Practice Group
Chair, Lane Powell Hiring Committee
Chair, Lane Powell Pro Bono Committee, Seattle Office
Antitrust and Trade Regulation
Health Care
Intellectual Property and Technology
Litigation

Representative Matters and Clients

Lead Counsel for Premera Blue Cross in MDL 1334 and other matters.
Counsel for Plaintiff VoiceStream Wireless n/k/a T-Mobile USA in complex commercial suit.
Counsel for Cutter & Buck in Cutter & Buck Securities Litigation and related directors and officers’ liability insurance coverage suit.
Counsel for Texaco in multi-million dollar environmental clean-up claim.
Counsel for the Fishing Company of Alaska in Greenpeace v. Nat’l Marine Fisheries Serv. and numerous other regulatory and federal court actions.
Counsel for plaintiff prosecuting multiple securities fraud claims in Eagle River Investments v. Liebsack, et al.
Counsel for various Washington State cities in successful constitutional challenge to Washington Initiative 695.
Counsel for a plaintiff magazine publisher in antitrust trial to successful verdict.

Awards and Honors

Peer Review Rated “AV” in Martindale-Hubbell
Named as a “Washington Rising Star,” Super Lawyers magazine, Intellectual Property Litigation, 2001-2010, Class Action and Mass Torts, 2011
Selected “Future Star” by Benchmark Litigation, 2009-2012
Named one of the “Forty under 40,” Puget Sound Business Journal, 2008