Profile / Jeffrey Frank: An Adventure Through Life, Law, and Leadership
By Scott E. Collins
Only when you shine light through a prism can you see the full spectrum of color hidden in plain light. For when light passes through the prism, the light bends, causing it to disperse in distinct colors that make up the spectrum of light — red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.
When you meet Jeffrey Frank, you immediately feel a positive, vibrant energy that emanates easily from him. Whether it’s his warm smile, friendly banter, easy sense of humor, or plain niceness, you feel it immediately and you feel at ease in his presence. Like sunshine on a summer day, his aura touches you with its warmth and calmness.
Each of us is complex enough to understand that unlike light, we cannot put ourselves through a prism to explain ourselves in seven colors. We are much too layered and jumbled in our make-up for that. But like a kid in seventh grade science class, let me shine Jeff’s positivity through a prism to see what disperses on the other side. I hypothesize that I will find themes that will help better understand who he is and the sources of his positive aura.
Modest Beginning
Jeff was born in Seattle the grandson of immigrants from Calabria, Italy, where his family name was Francomano. At a young age, he moved with his family to Yakima where he grew up. Early on, Jeff had a penchant for darts and boxing until he discovered he was better at basketball. He graduated from Western Washington University, although his major is unclear — his LinkedIn profile says he was “pre-law,” but I have heard that his major was “industrial psychology.” Given Jeff’s career, the latter may have better prepared him for what lay ahead.
In 1986, Jeff graduated from University of Puget Sound School of Law in Tacoma (which is now SU Law), where he met his wife — his “life-long partner,” as he says — of 38 years, Dina Yunker, who is also an attorney, practicing in the Bankruptcy Division of the AG’s Office. Jeff associated with Barokas and Martin (now Barokas, Martin & Tomlinson) for the first two years following graduation.
The Lawyer
Early in his career, Jeff gained substantial experience as a construction litigator. Although his skills translate across all commercial litigation, including real estate and partnership disputes, Jeff made his name in the construction arena. I have never litigated against Jeff, but those who have all agree that he is an outstanding trial lawyer. So good that it’s not surprising that he has forever been named “best” and “super” by his peers.
His career soared while practicing at Bullivant Houser Bailey, where he worked eighteen years in its Seattle office. In 2006, Jeff moved his practice to Foster Pepper (now, Foster Garvey), where he remained until 2018 when he left with two other partners, Bradley Thoreson and Doug Prince, to form the Seattle office of the Buchalter law firm, where Jeff continues to practice.
Construction litigation is a hard practice to maintain over the long-haul. Litigants and their attorneys in this practice area can be difficult, more so than many other areas of the law. But the word “difficult” would never be used to describe Jeff and the way he practices; for as highly regarded as he is for his skills, he is equally regarded for his professionalism. Philosophically, Jeff understands that in our adversarial judicial system, his responsibility is to advocate for his client with zeal, but he balances that zeal with professional and respectful interaction with opposing counsel and parties. Instead, Jeff is frequently described with the word “nice,” which in my view is the highest compliment that a seasoned trial lawyer with an outstanding reputation can receive.
The Leader
Perhaps applying industrial psychology, Jeff is a natural leader who is highly regarded by peers with whom he works. So much so that when Buchalter opened its Seattle office, they targeted Jeff to manage it. During his four years in that position, he not only launched the office and doubled the number of its attorneys in the first seven months, he firmly established Buchalter as a well-respected firm in Seattle. In 2019, Jeff strengthened Buchalter’s position in the Pacific Northwest by recruiting the Portland firm of Ater Wynne to merge its practice into Buchalter. By the time Jeff turned management of the Seattle office over the Bradley Hoff in 2022, the office was already operating as a mature law practice.
For five years before he joined Buchalter, Jeff served as the Managing Partner of Foster Pepper (which later merged to become Foster Garvey). Before that, he served as the Seattle office Managing Partner and on the Board of Directors for Bullivant Houser.
Trust me, managing attorneys is not a walk in the park, and Jeff has not just persevered challenges in law firm management, his steady hand on the helm has generated prosperity too. Indeed, law firm leaders at other firms routinely consult Jeff for his advice on difficult management matters, including partner compensation.
The Servant
Over the years, Jeff has applied as much of his time and talents to community and bar service as he has to the demands of his practice. Many organizations have greatly benefited from his service and leadership. For a sample: Jeff has served as President or Chair of the Washington Defense Trial Lawyers, the DRI Judicial Task Force, and the Washington Judicial Selection Coalition. He has also chaired the Board of the Giraffe Heroes Project, honoring people who “stick their neck out” for the greater good. Jeff has served on the Advancement Council at WWU since 2012; and as a co-founder of VotingforJudges.org since 2006. From 2018 to 2024, he served on the board of the Foundation for Washington State Courts, and he co-founded the Washington Committee for Ethical Judicial Elections.
His efforts have been recognized too. In 2007, the ABA awarded Jeff its “Silver Gavel Award,” recognizing outstanding work that fosters the American public’s understanding of law and the legal system. That same year, DRI awarded Jeff its “Community Service Award,” and the year before that, he received the “President’s Award” from WDTL.
I had the pleasure of serving with Jeff for years on the Board of the King County Bar Foundation and I followed in his big shoes as President after he held the position. Fortunately, Jeff continued on as Past President, which meant that I could tap his sensibility when I needed sage advice for an issue at hand. And he was incredibly helpful and supportive in that role, and for that I am thankful.
The Reflective Lawyer
As Jeff reflects on his 38 years in practice, he has experienced success for many clients, but it is a pro bono matter that he handled several years ago that is most meaningful to him. The immigration status of his client in that matter was threatened and deportation was a possibility. Adding to the risk was the fact that the client was married with three young children who depended on him for their well-being. The case was simple when it started, but it developed into a complex, protracted dispute that put significant demands on Jeff’s time. Ultimately, the case took three years and over 1,000 hours of Jeff’s time, but he stuck with it with dedication to the client and a sense of undying duty to see that justice was served. His efforts paid off, and the client ultimately prevailed, thanks to Jeff’s outstanding advocacy. This case is a source of pride for Jeff, as in his mind it encapsulates what lawyering should be and how lawyers should use their talents for a higher calling.
Reflecting on his years in the law, Jeff is thankful and appreciative for all that a career in the law has provided to him. So much that he plans to spend his remaining time in the profession “giving back”: “I feel lucky, I feel fortunate for the career that I have had and now feel compelled to give back at this point in my career.” In that vein, Jeff traveled to El Salvador earlier this year, volunteering for The Fuller Center for Housing, a spinoff from Habitat for Humanity. With a small group of like-minded people, Jeff built homes for families in need of stable housing.
The Adventurer
In June, Jeff and Dina did a safari on the Serengeti of Tanzania with long, bone-jarring drives into the “Great Migration” where they witnessed African wildlife, especially lions, close up. They took a side trip into Rwanda where they slogged up the jungled slopes of a volcano to see gorillas so close they could touch.
This mild-mannered, community-minded lawyer has also ridden camels in Egypt, sailed the Nile, trekked the Pietro Morena glacier in Patagonia, mountain-biked in Argentina, tangoed in Buenos Aires, explored deep into caves in Columbia, rolled cigars and sampled rums in offbeat cantinas in Cuba, biked in tandem with Dina up Haast Pass on the South Island of New Zealand, celebrated New Year’s Eve in Cape Town, South Africa, paddled the vine-covered Charges River in Panama, and reeled in a nine-foot sailfish off Zihuatanejo, Mexico; just to name a few of Jeff’s adventures over the years. Even Dina, who herself has boundless energy, has to admit that “sometimes it’s difficult to keep up with Jeff.”
The Future
Jeff has years of lawyering still in him. As he evolves with his practice, he sees himself doing less trial work and more as a construction dispute mediator. After years of being in the trenches of such litigation, his wants to help litigants resolve their disputes and avoid the expense, risk, and pain of trial.
Of course, Jeff will continue to travel, both for adventure and for giving back. And he plans to “give back” by dedicating time and talents to local causes for which he is passionate — such as “Dreamer” scholarships from WWU for offspring of undocumented workers in our country.
The Colors
We see the many colors of Jeff Frank when we view his positive aura through a prism. Jeff’s law partner and friend of twenty years, Brad Thoreson, says it best: “Jeff is that rare combination of being a really good person and also a really good litigator. There’s no ego there, just a person who is really comfortable with who he is. He is kind, nice to everyone, and treats everyone with respect.”
As much as Jeff may feel lucky and fortunate for his career, our bar and community have been luckier and more fortunate to have Jeff. His contributions to our profession, our bar, and our community over the past 38 years have been enormous, and we are a much better community because of him.
