Dean Brett

Dean Brett is the founding member of Brett McCandlis Brown and Conner who recently retired. Although Dean is fully retired, is no longer a partner, and does not participate in individual cases, Dean still offers advice, wisdom, leadership, and training on matters of ethics, rhetoric (the art of persuasion), and trial advocacy. He still volunteers as a trainer at the National Institute of Trial Advocacy and Justice Advocacy Africa. Dean knew early on that he wanted to be an attorney, and after putting himself through Stanford Law School he created the firm of Brett & Daugert with a fellow classmate who had the same vision. While this firm grew steadily and became one of the premier law firms in Whatcom County, Dean realized that he really enjoyed working with personal injury and wrongful death clients. These cases let Dean use his skills to truly help people move forward with their lives in a meaningful and lasting way. Why Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Cases are Different. In his earlier years as an attorney, Dean took on many kinds of cases including business litigation, criminal defense, and employment law, but he found that the most personally rewarding cases were personal injury and wrongful death cases. These types of claims allowed Dean to really get to know his clients and provide the assistance they need to get their lives back on track. He learned that innocent people injured through negligence often experience a sense of powerlessness about their situation, and that his assistance was crucial for his clients get the support they need. Dean enjoyed working closely with his clients and their families, and he got deep satisfaction out of successfully resolving their cases. Dean’s 40+ Year Track Record Dean’s years of experience allowed him to efficiently manage his cases to achieve a positive result as quickly as possible. At the same time, Dean’s unwillingness to settle a case for less than its value is the standard practice of all the lawyers who follow in his footsteps at Brett McCandlis Brown and Conner PLLC. Awards and Honors Honors Fellow, American College of Trial Lawyers

• Founding Member

• Brett & Daugert, Partner, January 1, 1972 - January 1, 2006

• Taking the Expert Witness Deposition, Electronic Discovery and Live Depositions, 2010 - Present
• The Art and Science of Persuasion, WSTLA Seminar
• How to mediate a personal injury case, Whatcom County Bar Association Seminar

• U.S. District Court Western District of Washington, 1972
• U.S. District Court Eastern District of Washington, 1997
• U.S. District Court District of Oregon, 2009
• Washington State Supreme Court, 1972
• Oregon, 2009

• Oregon State Bar, 2009
• Former U.S. Magistrate Judge (Part-time), Western District of Washington (2005 to 2016)
• Whatcom County Bar Association (President, 1985)
• Washington State Trial Lawyers Association, now known as Washington State Association for Justice (Member, Board of Governors, 1982-1985)
• Washington State Bar Association (Local District Counsel to Disciplinary Committee, 1980 to Present)
• American Association for Justice