--- title: "Marler Clark and Bill Marler: Frequently Asked Questions" date: 2026-08-08T08:27:00-07:00 author: Bill Marler canonical_url: "https://marlerclark.com/news_events/marler-clark-and-bill-marler-frequently-asked-questions" section: News --- [All News](/news_events) / [Press Releases](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/press-releases) / # Marler Clark and Bill Marler: Frequently Asked Questions **Who is Bill Marler?** William "Bill" Marler is a Seattle-area plaintiffs’ lawyer and the managing partner of Marler Clark, Inc., PS, The Food Safety Law Firm. He has spent more than thirty years representing people injured by contaminated food and arguing, publicly and often, that outbreaks are preventable. He is widely described as the nation’s leading foodborne illness attorney and food safety advocate. **How did he get into this work?** The 1993 Jack in the Box *E. coli* O157:H7 outbreak. The outbreak sickened more than 700 people across four states, hospitalized 171, and killed four children. Marler represented Brianne Kiner, the most seriously injured survivor, a nine-year-old girl who spent weeks in a coma and lost her large intestine. Her $15.6 million settlement was the largest personal injury recovery in Washington State history at the time, and settlements for individual and class claimants in the outbreak exceeded $50 million. **Is the Netflix documentary *Poisoned* about him?** In substantial part, yes. Jeff Benedict’s 2011 book *Poisoned: The True Story of the Deadly E. coli Outbreak that Changed the Way Americans Eat* chronicles the Jack in the Box outbreak and Marler’s role in it. Netflix released *Poisoned: The Dirty Truth About Your Food* in 2023, and the film won a 2024 Emmy for Outstanding Current Affairs Documentary. **What are some of his best-known cases?** Beyond Jack in the Box: Stephanie Smith, a young dance instructor left paralyzed by a contaminated Cargill hamburger, whose story earned New York Times reporter Michael Moss a Pulitzer Prize; Linda Rivera, the Nevada mother of six sickened by *E. coli* in Nestlé Toll House cookie dough, whose fight became Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s rallying point for the Food Safety Modernization Act; the 1996 Odwalla apple juice outbreak; the 2006 Dole spinach outbreak; the 2008–2009 Peanut Corporation of America *Salmonella* outbreak; the 2011 Jensen Farms cantaloupe *Listeria*outbreak; the 2018 Yuma romaine outbreak; and the 2024 Boar’s Head liverwurst *Listeria* outbreak. **What has he done outside the courtroom?** He petitioned USDA to regulate pathogenic *E. coli* as an adulterant, pushed for what became the 2010–11 FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, testified before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and has worked on adulterant status for non-O157 STEC and *Salmonella* and on hepatitis A vaccination for food workers. He also brings clients to Washington to tell their own stories; several have testified before Congress. **Does he teach?** Yes. He teaches food safety at institutions including the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the University of Washington School of Law and returned to Seattle University School of Law in 1998 as its Lawyer in Residence. He has endowed collegiate science scholarships around the country. **Does he speak at conferences?** Frequently, and usually for free. The speaking archive at billmarler.com catalogs 134 engagements in 11 countries, from the Association of Food and Drug Officials and the Food Safety Summit to the Royal Society for Public Health and the Center for Produce Safety. Common topics include food safety culture, legal risk and crisis management, outbreak and root-cause analysis, traceability and recall readiness, and victim stories. His standing line to industry audiences is "Put me out of business." **What is his background and education?** He earned degrees in English, economics, and political science from Washington State University, where he was the first student elected to the Pullman City Council, and graduated from Seattle University School of Law in 1987. He later served as a gubernatorial appointee to the WSU Board of Regents, chairing the board from 1998 to 2004. **What recognition has he received?** Best Lawyers in America (2009 to present), the Bar Register of Preeminent Attorneys (2002 to present), the ABA Journal Blawg 100 (2011 to present), Seattle University’s Distinguished Law Graduate Award (2013) and Professional Achievement Award (2011), the NSF Food Safety Leadership Award for Innovation in Education (2010), the Washington State Trial Lawyers Association Public Justice Award (2008), and the Seattle/King County Bar Association Outstanding Lawyer Award (2008). **What is Marler Clark?** Marler Clark, Inc., PS, The Food Safety Law Firm, represents victims of foodborne illness nationwide. It was the first law firm in the United States dedicated solely to that work, and its lawyers have the most extensive experience litigating food poisoning outbreak cases of any firm in the country. **How was the firm founded?** In 1998, out of opposite sides of the same case. Bill Marler and Andy Weisbecker had represented *E. coli* victims in the Jack in the Box litigation; Bruce Clark and Denis Stearns had defended Jack in the Box. The four combined their plaintiff- and defense-side experience into a single firm with one mission. **Where is the firm located?** 180 Olympic Drive S.E., Bainbridge Island, Washington 98110. Toll-free 1-800-884-9840; main line 206-346-1888. **Who works there?** The lawyers are William Marler, Denis Stearns, Ilana Korchia, Adriana Zimova, and Brian Ernst. The firm also employs an epidemiologist, a nurse paralegal, and a team of paralegals and staff who work directly with clients through the life of a case. **What illnesses does the firm handle?** *E. coli* O157:H7 and non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing strains, *Salmonella*, *Listeria*, *Campylobacter*, *Shigella*, *Cyclospora*, hepatitis A, norovirus, and botulism, along with the complications that follow them, including hemolytic uremic syndrome, Guillain-Barré syndrome, reactive arthritis, and irritable bowel syndrome. **Who has the firm litigated against?** Cargill, Dole, Walmart, Wendy’s, McDonald’s, Chipotle, ConAgra, Nestlé, Nebraska Beef, Costco, Yum! Brands, the Peanut Corporation of America, Boar’s Head, and Taylor Farms, among many others. The firm has been involved in essentially every major outbreak in the United States since 1993 and has consulted on cases in Europe, Asia, and Africa. **How much has the firm recovered for clients?** More than $850 million in verdicts and settlements on behalf of more than 10,000 victims of foodborne illness. **Does Marler Clark publish anything?** Several things. Bill Marler has personally funded and written Marler Blog since 2004, now more than 5,000 articles. He founded Food Safety News in 2009 and continues to publish it. The firm also maintains Food Poison Journal, Real Raw Milk Facts, a set of pathogen-specific sites, and the Outbreak Database, a searchable record of outbreaks linked to food, water, animals, and people. **Working with Marler Clark** **How much does it cost to hire a food poisoning lawyer?** Marler Clark handles these cases on a contingency fee. The initial consultation is free, and there are no attorney’s fees unless the firm obtains a recovery through settlement or verdict. At the end of a case the client receives a full written accounting of fees and expenses for approval before any money is disbursed. **Do I have a case?** The strongest cases share three things: a laboratory-confirmed infection, usually from a stool sample; a documented link between the illness and a specific food, restaurant, or product, often through a public health investigation or a genetic match to an outbreak strain; and real damages, such as hospitalization, lasting injury, or lost income. A free case evaluation is the fastest way to find out where you stand. **What is a case worth?** Every case is different. Value turns on the severity and permanence of the injury, medical expenses, lost wages, and how strongly the illness can be tied to a contaminated food. Cases range from short, self-resolving illnesses to catastrophic injuries such as kidney failure or paralysis. A realistic assessment is possible after review of the medical records and the outbreak evidence. **How long do I have to file a claim?** Statutes of limitation vary by state and by type of injury, and can be as short as one year. Evidence disappears faster than that: receipts, leftover product, and medical samples all go quickly. Speaking with a lawyer early matters. **Does the firm take cases outside Washington?** Yes. Marler Clark represents clients nationwide and has litigated food poisoning cases in more than 35 states. Many claims come by referral from lawyers elsewhere, and the firm associates local counsel where needed. You do not have to live in Washington to be a client. **What should I do if I think a food made me sick?** See a doctor and ask for a stool culture, since a laboratory-confirmed pathogen is what ties an illness to an outbreak. Report the illness to your local health department. Keep receipts, packaging, and any leftover product, and refrigerate rather than discard it. Write down what you ate and when the symptoms started while the details are fresh. **How do I reach the firm?** Through the contact form at marlerclark.com, by email at bmarler@marlerclark.com, or by phone at 1-800-884-9840. The firm responds within 24 hours. ### Lawsuit updates about foodborne illnesses [Reactive Arthritis Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=reactive-arthritis&year=all) [E. coli Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=e-coli&year=all) [Guillain-Barre Syndrome Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=guillain-barre-syndrome&year=all) [Salmonella Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=salmonella&year=all) [Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=hemolytic-uremic-syndrome&year=all) [Listeria Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=listeria&year=all) [Irritable Bowel Syndrome Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=irritable-bowel-syndrome&year=all) [Hepatitis A Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=hepatitis-a&year=all) [Norovirus Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=norovirus&year=all) [Botulism Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=botulism&year=all) [Campylobacter Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=campylobacter&year=all) [Shigella Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=shigella&year=all) [Cyclospora Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=cyclospora&year=all) ### Lawsuits updates by year [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 1998](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=1998) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 1999](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=1999) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2000](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2000) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2001](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2001) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2002](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2002) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2003](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2003) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2004](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2004) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2005](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2005) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2006](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2006) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2007](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2007) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2008](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2008) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2009](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2009) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2010](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2010) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2011](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2011) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2012](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2012) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2013](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2013) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2014](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2014) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2015](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2015) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2016](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2016) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2017](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2017) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2018](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2018) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2019](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2019) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2020](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2020) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2021](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2021) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2022](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2022) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2023](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2023) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2024](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2024) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2025](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2025) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2026](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2026) ##### Get Help #### Affected by an outbreak or recall? The team at Marler Clark is here to answer all your questions. Find out if you’re eligible for a lawsuit, what questions to ask your doctor, and more. [ Get a free consultation ](https://marlerclark.com/contact) ##### Outbreak Database #### Looking for a comprehensive list of outbreaks? The team at Marler Clark is here to answer all your questions. Find out if you’re eligible for a lawsuit, what questions to ask your doctor, and more. [ View Outbreak Database ](https://outbreakdatabase.com)