Jesse Forbes is a nationally recognized trial attorney and the Managing Member of Forbes Law Offices, PLLC, based in Charleston, West Virginia. His practice is devoted to representing survivors of abuse, as well as victims of serious injury, wrongful death, civil-rights violations, and large-scale consumer and environmental harms. He often co-counsels with attorneys across the nation in these matters and appears in courts throughout the country.
Forbes is known for his relentless advocacy on behalf of survivors of institutional abuse, victims of government and corporate misconduct, and individuals harmed by systemic failures. Before the age of 30, he secured a multi-million-dollar jury verdict, establishing his reputation as one of West Virginia’s leading plaintiff trial lawyers. Since that time, he has routinely secured multi-million-dollar and other significant results for his clients at both the trial and appellate levels.
He has extensive experience handling complex civil litigation at both the trial and appellate levels. His appellate practice includes post-verdict appeals, interlocutory matters, and extraordinary relief actions before the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, the West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. In addition to authoring briefs in significant matters, Forbes has presented oral argument before multiple appellate courts on dozens of occasions and frequently assists in cases that have reached the appellate stage.
As one of the lead counsel, Forbes played a central role in achieving more than $100 million in total recoveries for survivors of abuse at the former Miracle Meadows School, one of the largest collective results in the state’s history. He also represents hundreds of children born with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) in the nationwide opioid litigation, advocating for accountability and long-term treatment funding.
In 2025, Forbes’ clients were honored by the West Virginia Association for Justice for their perseverance in a five-year civil-rights case on behalf of the family of a detainee who died in state custody. During trial, Forbes’ cross-examination of a former jail guard exposed that the detainee had died of positional asphyxia after allegations that the guards had abused and smothered him for several minutes, leading to significant public attention and recognition of the need for systemic reform. The case resulted in a maximum recovery from the State’s insurance fund, marking an important milestone in West Virginia civil-rights accountability.
Forbes also currently serves as Class Counsel on behalf of a nationwide class of former detainees in Spurlock, et al. v. Wexford Health Sources, Inc., pending in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, Huntington Division (Civil Action No. 3:23-0476), involving claims that incarcerated individuals were denied medically necessary treatment in violation of their civil rights.
In addition to his work for individual victims, Forbes has represented government entities and others in major class and mass actions, including multi-million-dollar recoveries arising from the Freedom Industries chemical spill (Good, et al. v. American Water Works Company, Inc., et al., U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, Case No. 2:14-cv-01374 (2014)) and from the opioid epidemic (City of Charleston, West Virginia v. Rite Aid of Maryland, Inc., et al., U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, Case No. 2:18-cv-00251 (2018)). He also helped secure an $18 million class-action recovery in Jeffries v. West Virginia-American Water Company, et al., Kanawha County, West Virginia (2025), one of the largest such results of its kind in the state.
His practice also includes civil-rights litigation nationwide, where he has secured multi-million-dollar recoveries for victims of abuses by law-enforcement officers and institutions. His work has been recognized nationally for advancing victims’ rights, civil accountability, and constitutional justice.
BAR ADMISSIONS
- West Virginia State Bar
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
EDUCATION
- Juris Doctor, Wake Forest University School of Law
- Bachelor of Science, West Virginia University
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND MEMBERSHIPS
- Vice President and Executive Committee Member, West Virginia Association for Justice (WVAJ)
- West Virginia Delegate, American Association for Justice (AAJ)
- Board Member, National Crime Victim Bar Association
- Member, Injury Board
PUBLIC SERVICE & APPOINTMENTS
- Mental Hygiene Commissioner, Kanawha County, West Virginia
- Member, West Virginia Medical Cannabis Advisory Board
- Appointee, West Virginia Supreme Court’s Juvenile Justice Commission
HONORS & RECOGNITIONS
- AV Preeminent Rating, Martindale-Hubbell
- Recognized by Super Lawyers for excellence in plaintiff litigation
- Top 100 High Stakes Litigators
- National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Civil Plaintiff Attorneys
- Top 40 Under 40, National Trial Lawyers and West Virginia State Journal
NOTABLE RESULTS
- $100 Million+ in Recoveries for survivors of abuse at Miracle Meadows School (as one of the lead counsel)
- $18 Million Recovery for the State of West Virginia in major consumer-protection litigation
- $18 Million Class-Action Recovery in Jeffries v. West Virginia-American Water Company, et al., Kanawha County, West Virginia (2025)
- Multi-million-dollar recovery for government entities in the Freedom Industries chemical spill
- Multi-million-dollar recovery for government entities in the opioid litigation
- Representation of hundreds of children born with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) in the national opioid litigation
- Class Counsel in Spurlock, et al. v. Wexford Health Sources, Inc., U.S. District Court, S.D. West Virginia, Huntington Division (Civil Action No. 3:23-0476)
- Multi-million-dollar civil-rights recoveries for victims of law enforcement and institutional misconduct nationwide
- Numerous seven- and eight-figure recoveries in complex injury and abuse cases
- Nationally recognized for leadership in victims’ rights, civil rights, and consumer-protection litigation
COMMUNITY & PERSONAL
Jesse Forbes resides in Charleston, West Virginia, with his wife and two children. He remains deeply involved in community service and statewide reform initiatives focused on victims’ rights, civil justice, and child protection.
