Williams Kastner

Williams Kastner

Founded in 1929, Williams, Kastner & Gibbs PLLC is a regional law firm headquartered in Seattle, Washington, with an additional office in Portland, Oregon. The firm employs more than 65 lawyers and engages in a broad-based commercial practice. The firm sponsors and administers a participant-directed retirement plan for its legal professionals and staff, which functions as a self-directed benefits vehicle rather than an institutional investment pool. The retirement plan invests primarily through participant-directed accounts, meaning individual employees allocate assets among a curated menu of mutual funds and investment options typical of corporate 401(k) and profit-sharing plans. The plan's investment posture reflects standard fiduciary guardrails for a professional-services sponsor — diversified, liquid, and governed by plan documents rather than a dedicated internal investment committee publishing a strategic asset allocation. There is no public record of the plan making direct investments in private companies, venture funds, or real estate outside of publicly offered securities. In September 2023, the firm continued its support for the Campaign for Equal Justice, a legal-aid funding organization in Oregon, reinforcing a community-rooted footprint that defines the firm's civic identity. Attorneys Stan Foster and Heather Van Meter represent the firm in professional networks including the Oregon Women Lawyers association. The plan's distinction lies in its ordinariness — it is a retirement benefit for a regional law partnership, not a separately branded investment entity. Unlike single-family offices or endowment-style pools, it carries no disclosed direct-investment program, co-investment club, or multi-generational wealth mandate. Its structure is that of a regulated employee benefit plan under ERISA, subject to Department of Labor oversight, with fiduciaries drawn from the firm's partnership ranks.