Our Team
Protect Our Judges was founded by legal community leaders with decades of experience working alongside the federal and state judiciary.
Board of Directors
Cynthia Jones
President
Cynthia Jones of Jones Legal Group concentrates her practice on civil and criminal
appeals in federal and state courts, including briefing and arguing cases in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court of Washington, and the various courts of appeal in Washington. She also handles matters at the trial level in both federal and state courts. She is founding member of Protect Our Judges along with Nicole Battles, Tom Vertetis and Mike Wampold.
Cynthia is an appointee to the Criminal Justice Act Panel for the Ninth Circuit and
Western District of Washington. She currently serves as Second Vice President for the King County Bar Association Board of Trustees. She was elected Chair of the Ninth Circuit Lawyer Representative Coordinating Committee (LRCC) 2022-2025 and served on the Judicial Conference Executive Committee (CEC) during her term that culminated in an interview at the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference in July 2025 of Associate United States Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan. She served as past President of the Federal Bar Association for the Western District of Washington (M. Margaret McKeown FBA), past President of the William L. Dwyer American Inn of Court, and past Chair of the King County Bar Association Appellate Practice
Section.
She served by appointment of the U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington as Lawyer Representative to the Ninth Circuit for five years and currently serves on the Executive Board as Program Chair for the Ninth Judicial Circuit Historical Society. She is an Adjunct Professor at Seattle University School of Law teaching Federal Litigation. She started her legal career clerking at the Washington Supreme Court for Justice Charles W. Johnson.
Michael Wampold
Vice President
Michael Wampold is a third-generation trial lawyer whose career has been defined by his commitment to justice for injured clients. A graduate of Yale University and the University of Washington School of Law, where he served as President of the Moot Court Honor Board, Mike has built a distinguished practice that includes numerous multimillion-dollar jury verdicts. He is a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the American Board of Trial Advocates, and the International Society of Barristers, among other prestigious legal organizations.
Mike has dedicated significant time to the legal community beyond the courtroom. He currently serves as President of the M. Margaret McKeown Federal Bar Association of the Western District of Washington and has held leadership roles with the King County Bar Association, the Washington State Association for Justice, and the University of Washington School of Law Foundation. He also serves as a Ninth Circuit Lawyer Representative, appointed to represent attorneys practicing in the Western District of Washington.
Through decades of courtroom experience and community service, Mike has developed a profound respect for the judiciary and a clear-eyed understanding of what is at stake when judicial independence is threatened.
Nicole Battles
Treasurer
Nicole Battles is a seasoned executive manager and consultant whose work spans nonprofit organizations and membership associations across the country, with expertise serving the legal community. She holds a Master’s Degree in Nonprofit Management and has built her career at the intersection of civic engagement, organizational leadership, and public service. Nicole is also actively involved in local government, where she brings the same commitment to institutional integrity that defines her professional work.
Nicole has served in executive management roles for some of the most respected organizations in the legal community, including the M. Margaret McKeown Federal Bar Association of the Western District of Washington and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). Her work spans board governance, CLE programming, judicial engagement, communications, and civic education initiatives including mock trial programming.
Through her longstanding relationships with members of the federal and state judiciary, Nicole has witnessed firsthand the growing pressures facing the courts. She brings to Protect Our Judges both that firsthand perspective and the organizational expertise needed to build a national public awareness campaign that rises to this moment.
Thomas Vertetis
Secretary
Tom Vertetis is a seasoned trial lawyer dedicated to representing individuals and families in high-stakes cases involving medical malpractice, wrongful death, sexual abuse, product liability, civil rights, and complex aviation litigation.
Over the course of his career, he has tried more than 60 cases to verdict, securing significant results. These include a $165 million product liability verdict against Monsanto on behalf of seven school employees exposed to PCBs, a $13.95 million medical malpractice verdict for a young adult who suffered a stroke during a cardiac procedure, and a federal civil rights verdict involving the violation of a disabled student’s constitutional rights.
Tom’s work has earned broad recognition throughout the legal community. He is a recipient of the Washington State Bar Association’s “Local Hero Award,” the Pierce County National Association of Legal Professionals’ “Boss of the Year,” and the Pierce County Bar Association’s “Pro Bono Award.” He was named “Trial Lawyer of the Year” by the Washington Chapter of ABOTA and, in 2025, received the Washington State Association for Justice’s “Professionalism Award.” He has also been consistently selected as a Super Lawyer, an honor reserved for the top 5% of attorneys in Washington, and in 2025, was named among the Top 10 Attorneys in the state.
In addition to these honors, Tom is listed in The Best Lawyers in America for medical malpractice and is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He currently serves as Vice Chair of the Washington State Committee of the American College of Trial Lawyers and as Immediate Past President of the Washington Chapter of ABOTA. He is also the President of the Foundation for Washington State Courts and the Incoming President of the M. Margaret McKeown (M3) Federal Bar Association. He is a Past President of the Legal Foundation of Washington (LFW) C4EJ, the state’s largest fundraiser and supporter of civil legal aid. In that role, he helped advance efforts to expand access to justice and strengthen support for legal services across Washington.
Outside of his practice, Tom is deeply committed to advocacy and community service. He is married to his college sweetheart and is the proud father of three children. As the parent of a child with special needs, he is a strong advocate for children with disabilities and supports organizations focused on autism research and outreach. He has also helped lead fundraising efforts for programs serving children and families.
Advisory Council
Jim Copacino
After working at high-profile agencies in New York and Seattle, Jim co-founded Copacino Fujikado in 1998, building it into one of the Pacific Northwest’s most respected independent agencies before retiring in 2020. His creative work has been recognized with some of the industry’s highest honors.
Steve Lawson
Steve Lawson is a seasoned strategist, entrepreneur, and media professional with decades of experience across broadcasting, digital production, and organizational leadership. Steve has developed a reputation for his ability to see the big picture, helping organizations make tough strategic decisions and communicate more effectively in a rapidly changing media landscape.
Ron Gross
Join Us
The threats facing our judges are real, documented, and growing. You can help us fight back.