Managing Partner and Attorney at Law

Melissa D. Carter

Seattle, WA

25+ Years Experience

About Melissa

I’ve never been willing to accept that some things in life just “aren’t fair,” or that “they are the way they are.” I’m hard wired to speak up when something isn’t just, to fight for what’s right and to fiercely protect the people I care for. This instinct is what led me to the law and now, as a mother and Partner at Adler Giersch, has defined my life’s calling. After graduating from UW and attending law school at Suffolk University in 1999, I was fired up to get into the courtroom, so I accepted a job as trial counsel for a prestigious insurance defense firm, defending large cases involving catastrophic injury, wrongful death and insurance coverage disputes. It was one of the best ways to build up courtroom experience, (something many attorneys don’t have), because we fought so many claims. To succeed as an insurance attorney, I had to convince myself that every case I defended involved some level of fraud or exaggeration to justify my “win” for the insurance company (which always meant a loss to someone who was injured). I saw firsthand how insurance rules are stacked against victims. People who are hurt by someone else’s bad choices often get robbed of a fair shot because they simply don’t have the money and resources that the insurance companies do. Seeking inspiration and meaning in my work, I looked to my hero Ani DiFranco who wisely said, “When you sit right down in the middle of yourself, you’re gonna wanna have a comfortable chair.” Then I took all that experience and knowledge of how insurance companies work and I switched sides. Almost instantly, I knew I was home.