| Oregon State Bar Bulletin — DECEMBER 2010 |
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Emil R. Berg, a member of the Oregon and Idaho bars who practices in both states from his office in Boise, has authored an annotation on Law Governing Appointment of Receiver as Ancillary Equitable Remedy in Federal Diversity Action, 44 A.L.R. Fed.2d 241.
Judge Diarmuid O’Scannlain of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has been appointed chair of the Committee on International Relations of the Judicial Conference of the United States. The three-year appointment, effective Oct. 1, was made by U.S. Chief Justice John G. Roberts. The committee was formed in 1993 as a response to increasing demand from newly emerging democracies and developing countries and helps to establish and expand the rule of law throughout the world.
Corporate attorney Thomas P. Palmer of Tonkon Torp has been elected to the board of directors of Business for Culture and the Arts, a nonprofit organization that connects business and the arts to strengthen Oregon’s culture and economy. He will serve a three-year term. Palmer’s practice focuses on securities and general corporate matters including mergers and acquisitions. He previously served on the board of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Oregon chapter, and is past chair of the board of the Portland Committee on Foreign Relations.
The Yamhill County Bar Association has announced it officers and board members for 2010-11: Caitlin Mitchel-Markley, president; Mark P. Pihl, vice-president; Josh Cooper, secretary-treasurer. Other board members are the Hon. Ronald W. Stone, Alexis Bishop, Brent Goodfellow, Scott Hodges, Jayme Kimberlyand Rachel Negra.
Jackson Lewis has been elected to the board of the Oregon Historical Society. Part of Tonkon Torp’s Wealth Planning Practice Group, Lewis advises high-net worth clients on estate planning, estate administration and probate litigation. His practice includes counseling closely held businesses on estate and succession planning and advising private foundations and public charities. He also serves on the board of the Broadway Rose Theater Company and volunteers at the Southeast Portland Legal Clinic.
Litigator Steven M. Wilker has been appointed to the board of Metropolitan Family Service, a nonprofit agency providing services and volunteer opportunities in the Portland area. Wilker counsels clients in complex commercial litigation, intellectual property, media communications and technology, energy, corporate governance, real estate and finance issues. He serves on the boards of directors and executive committees of the ACLU of Oregon and ACLU Foundation of Oregon. He is also a member and past chair of the OSB Bar-Press-Broadcasters Council.
The National Lawyers Guild recently honored four Oregon attorneys: Steven Goldberg, Zaha Hassan, Ashlee Albies and Thomas Nelson. They, along with three California attorneys, received the organization’s Law for the People Award, recognizing the team’s victory in the lawsuit, Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation v. Obama. As a result, Chief Judge Vaughn Walker of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California declared that the warrantless wiretapping program initiated by the Bush administration was not legal.
Bend attorney John Ogan, partner at Karnopp Petersen, spoke recently on water rights at the Tribal Water Law Conference held in Las Vegas. Ogan presented a case study of the Columbia River Hydro Plan, addressing the system, history of litigation, key tribal issues and a recent settlement with Columbia Basin tribes and states. He represents the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon on a broad array of legal issues and is involved significantly in its natural resources and treaty fishing matters. This representation includes complex multi-party litigation and negotiations, along with assisting in political and legislative initiatives that help advance the tribes’ interests.
Turid L. Owren, chair of Tonkon Torp’s Immigration Practice Group, recently was appointed to two national committees of professionally recognized immigration attorneys that review policies and practices of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service. The committees, under the auspices of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, monitor and provide impartial, third-party professional review of adjudication trends as well as specific cases. This is the seventh consecutive year that Owren has been asked to serve on or chair AILA committees. She received an AILA presidential commendation for outstanding leadership in 2007. Alan C. Perkins, another partner in the firm’s immigration practice, also has been asked for the second time to serve on an AILA committee. The Vanderbilt University Law School graduate joined the firm in 2007.
David Moon was a speaker at the Idaho Water Law Conference held in Boise in late September. Moon spoke on a panel that addressed “Water Litigation Update: Recent Cases.” His presentation dealt with litigation regarding “exempt wells” in Washington, New Mexico and Montana. He has practiced water law his entire career. He is the co-founder and editor of The Water Report, a professional newsletter that covers water rights and water quality issues.
Elizabeth M. Grant, attorney in charge of the charitable activities section of the Oregon Department of Justice, is president-elect of the National Association of State Charities Officials. She will serve as president in 2011-12.
Lawrence Wobbrock has become a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He was inducted at a ceremony during the college’s recent annual meeting in Washington, D.C. Fellowship in the college is extended by invitation only and only after careful investigation, to those experienced trial lawyers who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards of ethical conduct, professionalism, civility and collegiality. There are currently approximately 5,790 members in the United States and Canada.
Eugene attorney Mark M. Williams of Gaydos, Churnside & Balthrop received the Oregon Gay and Lesbian Law Association annual Award of Merit for exemplary contribution to justice in striving for equal rights for all Oregonians at the organization’s 19th annual banquet in Portland on Oct. 16.
Smith Freed & Eberhard Partner Jeff Hansen has been appointed to the American Board of Trial Advocates. He will be one of 32 advocates currently appointed from Oregon. He has conducted more than 100 jury trials and 270 arbitrations during his 18 years of practice. Hansen has represented clients in matters involving personal injury, wrongful death, products liability, toxic exposures, RICO, fraud and other commercial claims. He has also litigated employment claims and has successfully represented businesses in a wide variety of matters. Hansen is a member of the Defense Research Institute, Litigation Counsel of America, Oregon Association of Defense Counsel and the Society for Human Resource Management.
Markowitz, Herbold, Glade & Mehlhaf in Portland recently earned the BEST Business Center’s new Portland Climate Champion recognition. To achieve “climate champion” status, the firm improved energy efficiency of its business operations, provided alternative transportation options for employees and improved their already robust waste reduction and recycling program. The designation is valid for two years.
Kelly M. Hagan was recently elected secretary of the National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees board of directors. She also currently serves as editor of the association’s quarterly journal, NABTalk. Hagan is a trustee in Chapter 7 and 11 bankruptcies in the Western District of Michigan.
At a gala fundraiser for nonprofit immigration legal services providers in October, Portland attorney Teresa A. Statler was awarded the Gerald H. Robinson Excellence in Advocacy Award by the Oregon chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. The award recognizes accomplishments of chapter members who demonstrate excellence in advocating for the rights of immigrants. Statler is also a co-editor of the bar’s recent publication, Rights of Foreign Nationals.
Jeffrey Wong is the recipient of the inaugural Mentor of the Year Award given by the new tax lawyers committee of the OSB Taxation Section. Known for taking the time to listen to those who seek out his advice and for being generous with his time, Wong has earned a reputation for sharing his experiences and knowledge in a way that both encourages and challenges his mentees to be better lawyers and to be more involved in the legal community. Wong has served as a member of the section’s executive committee since 2007. His law practice focuses on tax controversy, bankruptcy and debtor representation.
Corbridge & Short Law Group announces the addition of attorney Adam R. Thayne to its Hillsboro office. Thayne received his J.D. from the Willamette University College of Law. Following his law school graduation, Thayne completed a judicial clerkship with the Hon. Angel Lopez in the Multnomah County Circuit Court. Thayne’s law practice focuses on bankruptcy and criminal defense, with an emphasis on Spanish-speaking clients.
Williams Kastner announces the addition of Andrija Samardzich as an associate in the Portland office. With an extensive background specializing in product liability defense for major automobile manufacturers, Samardzich will focus his practice on business litigation and transactions as well as product liability and mass torts. He served as a law clerk for the Arizona Court of Appeals and presided over unemployment insurance appeals hearings as an administrative law judge in Indiana. Samardzich received his J.D. from the Indiana University School of Law.
Gevurtz Menashe has opened an office in downtown Vancouver to better serve the firm’s southwest Washington clients. The office is located at 805 Broadway Street; phone: (360) 823-0410. The Portland-based firm, now with 21 lawyers, has a practice dedicated exclusively to family law.
Sara K. Staggs has recently joined the law firm of Michelle R. Burrows as a litigation associate. Her practice focuses on civil rights litigation, primarily police force and prisoner rights issues.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Johnathan Haub is completing his two-year assignment to Podgorica, Montenegro, as the U.S. embassy’s resident legal adviser. He will soon return to the U.S. Attorney’s office to resume his duties in the criminal division in Portland. During his detail to Montenegro, he assisted in implementing a new criminal procedure criminal code that implements plea bargaining, asset forfeiture, use of civilian undercover agents and prosecutor-led investigations. He served as special adviser to the special prosecutor for organized crime, corruption, terrorism and war crimes and assisted in forming Montenegro’s first multi-agency task force to fight organized crime and corruption.
Paul J. Kelly Jr., formerly of counsel at Garvey Schubert Barer, has joined the panel of U.S. Arbitration & Mediation of Oregon. He offers his services as an arbitrator and mediator, specializing in the fields of government and public policy law, and sports, arts and entertainment law, as well as for business and commercial disputes.
Freeman Green has joined Saalfeld Griggs as an associate attorney. A member of the firm’s estate planning group, his practice focuses on estate planning, protective proceedings and probate and trust administration. Green received his law degree from the University of Iowa College of Law and is licensed to practice in Oregon and California.
OSB members and spouses Justin Thorp, a partner at Martin Bischoff, and Heather Van Meter, a member of Williams Kastner, have temporarily left the practice of law in order to teach law at a university in Vietnam.
Michael L. Quillin has joined Lane County Legal Aid & Advocacy Center as a staff attorney for the Stop Violence Against Women Clinic Project. The focus of his practice will be on meeting the civil legal needs of survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and dating violence. Quillin graduated from the University of Oregon School of Law with an emphasis in family and juvenile law and has been a member of the Oregon State Bar since 2008. He served for two years as the judicial clerk for the Hon. Kip W. Leonard at Lane County Juvenile Court. Quillin is active in the Lane County Bar Association and was recently appointed co-chair of the new lawyers committee.
Yael A. Livny and Amanda Krismer Anderson have joined Ball Janik in the Portland office as associates. Livny’s practice focuses on employment law and litigation. She previously was an employment and labor law associate at Cooley LLP in Washington, D.C., and another Washington, D.C.-area law firm, where she focused on business litigation, internal investigations and monitoring, and qui tam and white collar criminal defense. She received her J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law (Boalt Hall) in 2006 and is also admitted to practice in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Anderson’s practice focuses on construction litigation and employment law. She received her J.D. from Willamette University College of Law in 2010. While in law school, she worked as a law clerk for the Oregon Department of Justice, appellate division and was the managing editor of the Willamette Law Review. Anderson was a member of the Moot Court Board, where she won the Don Turner Criminal Trial Competition.
The personal-injury litigation law firm D’Amore Law Group moved its main office into a 10,000 square foot building the firm purchased in Lake Oswego, near the intersection of Kruse Way and Boones Ferry Rd. The firm will continue to maintain an office in downtown Portland. The new address is 4230 Galewood St., Suite 200, Lake Oswego, OR 97035.
The local government law group of Speer Hoyt announces that Lauren Sommershas become an associate of the firm. Sommers graduated from the University of Oregon School of Law in 2006. She has been providing general advice to local government entities since 2006. Her areas of expertise include government ethics, public records and public meetings laws, urban renewal, annexation and withdrawal, election law, Measures 37 and 49 and government relations.
Longtime Tigard lawyer Pat Furrer died in a Portland care center on Oct. 16, 2010, after a brief but severe battle with lung cancer. He was 68.
Patrick James Furrer was born in Medford, Ore., on March 10, 1942. He spent his early years in Medford and moved with his family to Lake Oswego at age 13. He graduated from Lake Oswego High School (1960) and the University of Oregon (1964), where he was a member of the Delta Upsilon fraternity. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve. He earned his law degree at McGeorge School of Law, University of the Pacific, Sacramento, Calif. He returned to Oregon and practiced law in the Tigard area until his death.
In 1975, Furrer married Jeanne Caswell. They had two daughters, Ryann and Morgan. As they grew and became active, he could be seen on the soccer and Little League fields and at basketball games cheering the girls’ teams, transporting them to games and giving support wherever possible. He also gave hours of legal support to the benefit of Tigard Little League and various youth soccer programs.
Furrer served as Tigard Chamber of Commerce president and over the years spearheaded many community fundraising projects. He was active in Tigard Rotary for 34 years. While practicing in Tigard in 1981, he hired Michael J. Scott as a law clerk. After Scottt obtained his J.D. in 1983, he continued working with Furrer as an associate. One year later, the two formed Furrer & Scott, a partnership that lasted 17 years. In 2000, Furrer went solo, practicing in the fields of family law, business law, probate and estate planning.
He also served as the long-time municipal court judge in King City, and served frequently as an arbitrator in the tri-county area. In 1976, he wrote for the Oregon CLE publication on land use.
Furrer served on Oregon Trout’s first board of directors until 1995, when he and Bill Bakke established Native Fish Society. He became the first president of the Native Fish Society, served as its president until 2008 and was on the board until his death.
To fulfill one of his and his family’s last wishes, Furrer performed the marriage ceremony of his daughter Morgan to Justin Bors on Oct. 10, the Sunday before his death.
Furrer was preceded in death by his parents and his wife, Debra. He is survived by his two daughters, a step-daughter and step-son, a sister and brother, and his former wife, Jeanne Caswell.