Our Team of attorneys
Gibby M. Stratton (he/him)
GIBBY STRATTON’S practice focuses on employer/employee relations and workers' compensation litigation. All of his current clients are businesses/employers to which he provides consultation and representation in workers compensation and employment-related issues. Gibby has been involved in all phases of trial practice both before administrative agencies and the state and federal courts in Washington.
Gibby is a member of the Washington State Bar Association and the Washington Self-Insurers’ Association. He is a regular speaker for employer groups and business associations on workers' compensation and employment issues. He has contributed several articles in ABA publications dealing with employment issues.
Gibby graduated magna cum laude in classical studies from the University of Washington in 1981. He obtained his law degree from Willamette University College of Law in 1985, where he was a member of the Willamette Law Review and also received the distinction of being elected to the Order of Barristers.
Prior to becoming a lawyer, Gibby worked in the music business for Warner Bros. Records and Music and a private firm managing artists, producing records and managing their song publications. After working several years in the music business, he moved to the island of Maui where he worked on his tan and played music in the bars and restaurants around the island while contemplating his career path. Gibby still enjoys the beaches of Hawaii and playing his guitar and singing when time permits. Gibby also follows Arsenal Football Club, an English Premier League team, and has done so since he was a teen. He travels to North London whenever he can to see them play in person.
Bernadette M. Pratt (she/her)
BERNIE PRATT has over 25 years of experience representing employers in workers' compensation matters. She has litigated cases before the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals and our Superior Courts. She also has argued cases in the Washington Appellate Courts, including the Supreme Court. Bernie is admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington as well as all courts in the State of Washington.
Bernie is a member of the Washington State Bar Association and the Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association. Additionally, she is a member of the Washington Self-Insurers Association where she currently serves on the Board of Directors as Vice President for Associate Members.
Bernie regularly speaks and teaches on issues relating to workers’ compensation. Bernie received her B.A. with honors from the University of Puget Sound in 1984 and her law degree from the University of Washington School of Law in 1992 where she graduated first in her class. At the University of Washington she was a member of the Washington Law Review, the National Moot Court Team and was elected to the Order of the Coif and Order of Barristers. Prior to attending law school, Bernie spent one year living in Germany where she worked in a bar, learned to speak German and traveled throughout Europe.
Marne J. Horstman (she/her)
MARNE J. HORSTMAN practices workers’ compensation law and advises employers on related matters. She graduated from the University of Minnesota at Minneapolis with a B.A. in Russian Language and Literature in 1991 and received her J.D. in 1997 from Seattle University School of Law after working as a paralegal in complex litigation. She was admitted to the Washington State Bar in 1997 and is a member of the Washington State Bar Association, the Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association, and the Washington Self-insurers’ Association.
She has spoken on numerous workers’ compensation and related employment issues. Her practice has included appearances and litigating cases before the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals and Washington State Superior Courts, Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court. Marne has also authored an amicus brief for the Washington Self-Insurers’ Association and briefs and memoranda for the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals, the Superior Courts, Courts of Appeal, and the Supreme Court of the State of Washington.
When she is not “reasonably and continuously” engaged in the practice of law, you might find her escaped to the beach, mountains, or the kitchen conjuring.
Kristin D. Whitford (she/her)
Kristin Whitford brings years of experience working in the litigation arena and an in-depth knowledge of the Industrial Insurance system through several years focusing on Workers’ Compensation and disability cases. She routinely represents employers’ interests before the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals and aids in obtaining cost-effective claim resolution. Kristin has litigated numerous cases in front of the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals and Washington State Superior Court.
Kristin strives to produce great results for her clients through her litigation and counseling skills, and to aggressively represent self-insured employers to obtain the best possible result. Because of her perspective as a former Claimant’s attorney, she brings a unique understanding of the challenges and complexities involved in Workers’ Compensation cases and she believes strongly in preserving the integrity of the Industrial Insurance system through a proactive and collaborative defense of Washington employers.
Kristin received her Bachelor’s degree in Comparative Sociology from the University of Puget Sound, then received her Juris Doctorate from Seattle University where she received the President’s Scholarship. She is a member of the Washington State Bar Association, Washington Self-Insurance Section, and Washington Trial Defense Lawyers’ Pro Bono & Community Service Committee, and serves as chair elect for the WSBA’s Trial Advocacy Program. Kristin was awarded a “Top Rated Workers’ Compensation Lawyer” by Super Lawyers Magazine in 2017 and 2018.
Before coming to the Pacific Northwest for undergraduate school at the University of Puget Sound, Kristin was born and raised in Southern California. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her husband and their new baby, traveling, running half marathons and relaxing with a good show.
Becky D. Craig, Of Counsel
REBECCA CRAIG graduated from Reed College with a B.A. in 1971 and from the University of Oregon with a J.D. in 1974. Prior to entering private practice, she was with the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals for ten years where she served as an Industrial Appeals Judge of the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals and as the Board's Executive Secretary. Becky focuses her practice on the representation of self-insured employers in workers' compensation cases.
She founded and for several years chaired Women in Workers' Compensation, now known as Professionals in Workers’ Compensation. She has in the past chaired the legal subcommittee of the Washington Self-Insurers Association Legislative committee, and the joint Washington Self-Insurers Association/Association of Washington Business Amicus Committee. She has spoken frequently to professional groups on subjects related to workers' compensation.
In her leisure time she likes to entertain, travel and read. She has served on the boards of numerous central Washington arts organizations including, Gallery One Visual Arts Center, Laughing Horse Arts Foundation, Jazz in the Valley, the Western Art Association, and the Clymer Museum of Art.