Mike Koch attended Western Washington University where he majored in Political Science and minored in History, B.A., 1968. He served as managing editor of the college newspaper, The Western Front. Before that, Mike was in the Navy and served with Commander Amphibious Group 3. In 1962, he participated in the Cuban Missile Crisis. He was a yeoman during active duty, and continued with the Naval Reserve while in college. While at Western, he and his wife Sharon rented out rooms to other students in a six-bedroom house in Bellingham that they owned and refurbished.

Mike attended law school at the University of Washington, JD 1971. He then worked as a Deputy Prosecutor in the Kitsap County Prosecutor’s Office until May of 1973, when he opened his own general law practice in Silverdale, focusing on personal injury and real estate. Since 1985, his focus has been almost solely on personal injury and wrongful death claims.

Mike served as the president of Silverdale Rotary Club & Kitsap County Bar Association. He served on the board of the Washington State Trial Lawyers Association for six years. He has been an Eagle Member since 1986. The Eagle Program is a special category of membership in WSTLA, promoting legislation favoring consumers, providing ongoing education for members, and a high level of advocacy for injured people. He has spoken at Continuing Legal Education Programs for WSTLA and local community groups.

He served on the Board of Peninsula Services, an organization for the benefit of the handicapped. He’s been a pro bono attorney for the Kitsap County Historical Society and the Kitsap County Destruction Derby Association for many years. In Pimentel vs. Roundup Company, 100 Wn.2d 39 (1983), he established a new standard of care, for self-service stores. The Supreme Court established the principle that a self-service store has notice of dangerous conditions arising on its premises because of its self-service nature. Therefore, to be held liable, a self-service store does not need actual notice of a hazard. When customers pick up and put back things on the shelves in an unsafe manner, they handle merchandise in a way so as to create a dangerous condition on the premises, and the store itself must be held responsible.

Mike has tried cases in Kitsap, Pierce, Jefferson, Clallam, Mason, King, Snohomish, Douglas & Yakima counties and in federal court for Western Washington. He is respected as a senior trial attorney by insurance companies, defense counsel & fellow plaintiff’s lawyers.

He’s been married since December of 1966 and has two children. He enjoys history, collecting magic lantern slides, and travel. In the last few years, he and his wife have traveled to Egypt, Turkey, Ireland, Greece, New Zealand, South America and Eastern Europe. He enjoys listening to Paul Simon, Jewel, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, Big Band Music, NPR, and attending musicals at the 5th Avenue Theater and plays at the Bremerton Community Theater.

Mike believes that those who are injured as a result of someone else’s negligence are entitled to be fully and fairly compensated for the damages they have sustained.