Meet Partners Edward A. Wallace and Mark R. Miller

Edward A. Wallace and Mark R. Miller founded the Wallace Miller law firm on November 1, 2021. Prior to that, they worked together for almost two decades across class actions, mass torts, personal injury cases, and appellate advocacy. We sat down with them to learn more about how they started the firm, the work that goes into successful plaintiffs’ advocacy, and what motivates their legal work. 

Partners Mark R. Miller and Edward A. Wallace.

Edward, you built your law practice in mass tort and personal injury. Was there a case or moment that stands out to you as crucial to your career?

Edward: I had an interesting journey, because I worked at a relatively large defense firm on all types of cases, defending companies and professionals. I was mentored by some phenomenal lawyers, some that I still have as friends and hold in the highest esteem. I give them a ton of credit for working with me and mentoring me in all the right ways. 

But I knew that I wasn’t the right fit for defense, and that I wanted to be on this side of the law, bringing cases on behalf of those who, in many cases, could not otherwise afford representation.  I also liked the idea that a plaintiffs’ lawyer could hold people and companies to account for their wrongdoing. And then I got that opportunity, beginning in February 2000, to work on the plaintiffs’ side. Being thrown into very challenging cases and given the opportunity to figure out some of it for myself allowed me to gravitate to where I am.

Mark, you’ve worked on diverse types of cases over your career, from mass torts to class action to appellate advocacy. Where did you start out, and how has your role evolved?

Mark: With me, as with most attorneys, your approach to cases in the beginning is, both by necessity and by function, more project-oriented. As a young attorney you’re given tasks to do, you try to do the best that you can on those tasks, and you don’t necessarily have a say in the big picture or in larger strategic decisions in a case. 

But as you get more gray hair and as you’ve been a member of the bar and doing this type of work for longer, you get to have more of a say in the general strategy of cases—and the practice group in general, as opposed to just concentrating on doing the job. And at this point it’s both a blessing and a curse to be in a position where I’m not only doing the day-to-day stuff—because some of that is very interesting—but it’s also nice to be able to rely on other people to help you. 

How were the two of you first introduced?

Mark: I was introduced to Ed at our former firm through a law school colleague and friend.  I took the meeting because I saw it as an opportunity to do interesting, complex, and meaningful work. At the time, I was working on the defense side and felt like I was sort of in a rut from handling the same type of case over and over and over again. 

And in the end, joining Ed turned out to be what it was promised to be, in that it was a chance to work on high-stakes, nationwide, complex litigation. You’re still a smaller cog in a bigger machine in this type of practice, but you know what you’re fighting for is important, and you have the opportunity to try to bring about some good. 

Edward: From day one what impressed me, and I tell people this all the time, including all our new hires, was that Mark would show up at seven dressed in a suit and tie, and stay dressed in a suit and tie until at least seven that evening. That was back in the days when you couldn’t go home and do remote work. 

And from day one, what he had was a quiet strength that I can only wish I had. He was incredibly substantive and careful and thoughtful, and I respected that. I felt very comfortable when he was given significant responsibility at the firm, because I could rest easy knowing that our clients were in good hands. 

There’s no better feeling as a lawyer entrusted with something than to be able to turn to another lawyer and know that they’ve got it covered as well. And not only do they have it covered, but they might see it in a different way or a better way for the client. I could really rely on Mark for that, and I can rely on him for that to this day. That’s what I saw in him, and that’s what I consider partner material. 

You were both partners at your former firm. What made you realize that you could effectively start your own firm together?

Edward: Mark and I were friends, and also, at the end of the day, we saw enough differences in each other that actually turned out to be complementary. Mark could see pieces of a case that I couldn’t, and vice versa. And when you put those two things together, it leads to mutual respect, and ultimately it’s better for the client. And so for me, when I was deciding what the next chapter of my career was going to be, it was a very easy decision to see if we could make it work. 

Mark: And when I found out that Ed was leaving the old firm, I reflected on the fact that throughout the 15 years that I’d been working there, the cases that I most enjoyed working on and the moments that I relished the most as an attorney were on cases where I was working hand-in-hand with Ed. So, it seemed like the natural thing to do, to reach out to him and to see if I could join him on his next journey. 

What would you say makes your counterpart a good partner? What have you learned, working with each other as leaders of the firm?

Mark: I’ve worked with Ed for 18 years now, so this isn’t something that I’ve only realized in the last three years. But what makes Ed a great partner to work with is his diligence, his creativity, his ethics and hard work. He’s one of the most straightforward people that I’ve known, to other attorneys, to opposing counsel, to juries, to everybody. He’s always there for the firm, and always has a reasoned and intelligent response, no matter what the situation. 

Edward: I’m glad you feel that way, Mark, and that’s awesome to hear. I would say that Mark gives me the freedom to be creative and sometimes think wildly out of the box. And then he’s able to challenge me in ways that allow me to see other lanes on the highway that ultimately lead to a better result. That’s massive. 

Second, when I talked earlier about his quiet strength—I know he’s got it covered.

And last, because we’re humans, we are far from perfect. Forgiveness probably comes more from him towards me, because I’m probably the one that’s a little out there sometimes. He can forgive me when we encounter challenges. And because of his example of forgiveness, there’s a certain amount of humility that allows me to have, while still having the freedom and the rope to do it. 

Mark: At the end of the day, in any good partnership, you’re looking for somebody who has personality traits that complement yours, and who can step in and accomplish things you could never accomplish on your own. That’s the heart of a partnership. 

What was it like in the first days of Wallace Miller?

Mark: When I joined the firm, I had no idea how much administrative work is involved in getting a law firm off the ground, so the very initial days were blissful ignorance. But that changed pretty quickly. 

It’s been three years now—it’s amazing how much work there was to do, and we’ve come to understand how much work is still to be done. But we’re in a position where we have a better viewpoint to see the bigger issues and what needs to be done and where we’re going. 

You started this firm with a core group of people that you’d both worked with for years. What has it been like, growing from that to more than 60 employees today?

Edward: The thing that kept me most comfortable in some pretty trying times at the beginning was the fact that there was such a good foundation of people around us. We knew they saw things the same way we did, and not only had a vision, but would also do the hard work to create that vision. That really helped us. 

We want to make sure that the initial commitments that we all made to each other can still be kept, even when we’re adding new people. 

Mark: I never thought that we’d grow at the rate we have. But it’s been a natural progression based on the influx of cases and the need to support those cases and do the best we can by those clients. 

You do your best to keep the culture that you have. One of the reasons I joined the firm was a culture where everybody respects each other and works well together. When you grow to the size the firm is now, it can be hard to maintain that. But you build it on a strong foundation, where you know that the people you started the firm with share that culture and share those beliefs. You do your best to hire people who echo that, and you hope that you don’t get large enough where you lose it. 

But it’s something we work on daily. We do our best to make sure that our core beliefs are held by everyone else that works here. And I think we’ve done a good job of that, but we’ll keep checking in. 

What advice would you give to someone starting their own practice?

Edward: To have the appropriate amount of insanity to think that you can really do it. And that once you do it and you’re entrusted with that responsibility, to make sure you carry it through. If you’re going to go, you better go all in, because there’s a lot of people counting on you. 

Mark: I’d echo that, and also say—remember that it’s not just about you and your practice, it’s about putting your clients and the people you work with first.  

Was there a moment that made you pause and think, “We’re building something extraordinary here”?

Mark: For me, that’s the Huskey verdict in the transvaginal mesh MDL in the Southern District of West Virginia. It was a bellwether trial in the transvaginal mesh litigation involving a product type that most other attorneys in the country were not willing to take to trial. And with the great work of our co-counsel we stepped up and did it, and we were able to obtain a jury verdict for a deserving client and her husband. And then we were able to uphold that verdict on appeal in the fourth circuit.  

And through that we were able to, in my opinion, change the course of the litigation and provide the opportunity for tens of thousands of women to obtain a better value in those types of cases. That trial was long ago at our former firm, but it embodies what I think you are asking. 

What’s next for Wallace Miller?

Mark: I’m looking forward to continued growth, both in the practice areas we’ve traditionally focused on and the new areas we and our colleagues are pursuing and building. I’m looking forward, of course, to success in our clients’ cases, but also to the other attorneys at the firm growing and taking on greater responsibilities. 

As a firm, I think there are fantastic things coming and the people we’ve assembled here are more than capable of all the growth that we plan and hope for. 

Edward: I’ll end it on a funny note and say that if and when I decide to pass the Xbox controller to the next generation, I hope the outcome is better than the transfer from Urban Meyer to Ryan Day. But I plan to be here for a while and Ryan Day isn’t, so it’s all good.   

Learn more about Mark’s and Edward’s backgrounds in their attorney bios and check out Edward’s interview on WGN’s Let’s Get Legal.