| Oregon State Bar Bulletin — FEBRUARY/MARCH 2012 |
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For the seventh straight year, Stoel Rives has been designated the Most Admired Professional Services Firm in Oregon, according to a survey conducted by the Portland Business Journal. For this category, 1,800 CEOs and top-level managers throughout the state were asked to rate both law firms and accounting firms on such attributes as innovation, quality of product or service, community service, branding and quality of management.
Thomas R. Wood of Stoel Rives has been awarded the Environmental Leadership Award by the Northwest Environmental Conference, an event presented by Associated Oregon Industries, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and the Washington Department of Ecology, for regulated facilities and environmental management programs. Wood, who was recently named Portland’s “Environmental Law Lawyer of the Year” by The Best Lawyers in America, has counseled some of the leading industries in the United States on environmental permitting issues. His permitting and compliance projects have included work in the power generation, biofuels, primary metals, semiconductor, motor vehicle manufacturing, wood products, chemicals, and oil and gas industries.
Kelly Cole has been promoted to executive vice president of the National Association of Broadcasters, where she will oversee all advocacy efforts of the department. Cole joined NAB in 2006 after serving six years as telecommunications counsel to the House Committee on Energy & Commerce, where she was an adviser on legal and policy issues relating to communications and the Internet. During her tenure she was responsible for negotiating and drafting key communications laws, including digital television transition legislation. Prior to her work with the Committee on Energy & Commerce, Cole was an associate with the Washington, D.C., law firm Preston Gates Ellis & Rouvelas Meeds, which is now K&L Gates.
Román D. Hernández has been appointed as representative of the Hispanic National Bar Association to the American Bar Association (ABA) House of Delegates. He is currently the chair of board of the HNBA Legal Education Fund. He served as HNBA national president from 2009-2010. Hernández is a shareholder at Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt in Portland.
Jessica (Shoup) McConnell, an associate with Greene & Markley, has been recognized as an Up & Coming Lawyer Award finalist by theDaily Journal of Commerce. McConnell was one of 24 finalists honored at a dinner reception in November. The annual program honors outstanding Oregon lawyers admitted to the bar during the past 10 years, and recognizes them for demonstrated leadership and above-average achievements in legal assignments, active involvement in professional organizations and commitment to the community through extracurricular activities or pro bono work. McConnell concentrates her practice in federal, state and local tax controversies, including tax audits, offers in compromise and tax collection matters. McConnell also plans and presents educational seminars, serves on legislative workgroups, and authors articles about developments in the law. She volunteers at the OSB’s bankruptcy clinic and provides free legal assistance through other pro bono cases.
George Mardikes of Davis Wright Tremaine, whose practice focuses exclusively on governmental finance, has been given a Jay Terry Lifetime Achievement Award from a leading trade association in the field. Mardikes, who is a partner at Davis Wright’s Portland office, received the award at the 2011 fall conference of the Association for Governmental Leasing and Finance in Orlando, Fla. Mardikes is only the fifth person to receive the award in the 30-year history of the organization. Mardikes is the original author and ongoing project manager of the AGLF’s Fifty-State Survey, a compilation of legislation and case law affecting governmental leasing in the 50 states that is a primary benefit of AGLF membership. He has served on the AGLF board of directors for six years and has served as secretary as well.
Lane Powell firm president Lewis M. Horowitz has been named a 2011 CEO of the Year in the professional services category by Portland Business Journal as a tribute to his leadership and accomplishments at Lane Powell. Horowitz received his award at the Oregon’s Most Admired Companies luncheon last December. Horowitz received this award, in part, because of the firm’s growth in the past year, including increased revenue and number of employed, in spite of a down economy. He has served as Lane Powell president since 2006 and was re-elected to another three-year term in June 2011. He has been a tax attorney with the firm since 1992.
Stoel Rives attorney J. Mark Morford has been awarded the Oregon State Bar Environmental and Natural Resources Section’s inaugural Leadership and Service Award. The award honors an individual who has provided “leadership, service and outstanding contributions in the areas of environmental and natural resources law.” Morford has nearly 30 years of experience advising on environmental issues and has played a significant role in the development of environmental policy in Oregon. He helped author Oregon’s brownfield statute and key portions of the current Oregon Cleanup Law and has influenced Oregon statutes and regulations regarding waste management, air quality and water quality. He has also served as chair and editor of the section’s newsletter.
The Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce has named Gerry Gaydos, a lawyer with Gaydos, Churnside & Balthrop, as 2011 Eugene First Citizen, recognizing his outstanding individual contributions to the Eugene/Springfield community through business and community service efforts. Gaydos, who has practiced business and estate planning law in Eugene for 35 years, has served as a leader both locally and in the legal profession. His service is longstanding and far-reaching, including leadership roles within Eugene Family YMCA, City Club of Eugene (co-founder), Birth to Three, Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce (past chair), Downtown Eugene Inc. (past president), Eugene Planning Commission, Metropolitan Affordable Housing Inc., Sacred Heart Foundation, City of Eugene Budget Committee, Lane Transit District and past president and president-elect of United Way of Lane County. In the legal profession, has served innumerable roles, lately as chair of the Lane County Bar Racial and Ethnic Bias Committee. In 2010, he was honored with the Oregon State Bar’s highest honor, the Award of Merit; he has also been honored with the Lane County Bar Association’s Distinguished Service Award. One of only a handful of persons ever to serve two terms on the OSB Board of Governors, he served as president of the Oregon State Bar in 2009.
Gary A. Reuter, a partner in Haugeberg, Reuter, Gowell, Fredericks & Higgins, in December received Yamhill County Bar Association’s 2011 Bob Payne Award, given annually to the attorney who best exemplifies the late Bob Payne’s enduring commitment to public service and community involvement. Reuter has been involved in many aspects of the McMinnville community since 1970, including long-time commitments to the local Boy Scouts, the McMinnville Rotary Club and its foundation, the Chamber of Commerce, the McMinnville Community Center Development Committee, Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Yamhill County, McMinnville Little League and Babe Ruth Association and the Yamhill County Foundation. He has also been involved in the local legal community, where he has served as a deputy district attorney, the district attorney, a pro tem judge, the Willamette Valley American Inn of Court, and on the Judicial Committee of the Yamhill County Bar Association.
The National American Indian Housing Council, a national organization that advocates on behalf of Indian tribes, has named Edmund Clay Goodman as its First Lawyer of the Year. Goodman works in the organization’s Portland office and has represented Indian tribes, tribal organizations and tribal housing entities for more than 20 years.
Miller Nash was honored as one of the Most Admired Professional Services Companies in Oregon at the Portland Business Journal’s seventh annual Oregon’s Most Admired Companies luncheon. Placing in the top 10 again this year, Miller Nash was on the list of Most Admired Professional Services Companies in 2009 and 2010 as well. The winning companies are determined by a survey sent to 1,800 CEOs around the state. The multiservice commercial law firm was recognized at an awards luncheon held at the Hilton Hotel in Portland.
Bradley Maier, senior counsel in the Portland office of Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt, recently was honored by Portland’s Daily Journal of Commerce as a finalist for its 2011 Up and Coming Lawyer Award. Maier focuses his practice in the area of immigration and customs law compliance. With more than 15 years of experience in the field, he represents foreign and domestic companies, investors, families and individuals with a wide range of immigration matters before U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service, U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Tonkon Torp litigator Jon P. Stride has been elected to a three-year term on the board of the Oregon Association of Defense Counsel, effective Jan. 1. Stride has practiced in the firm’s litigation department since 1990. He represents businesses and individuals in a variety of disputes before state and federal courts. Stride was also recently appointed to a three-year term on the Multnomah Bar Association’s Judicial Screening Committee.
Ten years following the signing of a consent decree in Oregon’s landmark Staley case, which resulted in persons with disabilities receiving increased support and services, the Oregon Support Services Association recently convened a celebration. In 2011, as the decree expired, the Oregon legislature wrote the newly created brokerage system into state statute. At the celebration, attorneys Jim Wrigley from Disability Rights Oregon and Bob Weaverfrom Garvey Schubert Barer accepted awards for their longstanding legal work on the case:
Jordan Ramis attorney John R. Bachofner has been elected to the Oregon Association of Defense Counsel’s board of directors to a three-year term effective Jan. 1. Actively involved in the OADC for most of his career, Bachofner focuses his practice on litigation, as well as on insurance coverage, product liability, general business, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights issues. He has represented individuals and organizations in a variety of arbitration forums, agency hearings and state and federal courts.
Hillsboro attorney Kathryn A. Hall of Kathryn A. Hall P.C. has been appointed to the advisory board of Oregon Horse Country, a tourism and equine businesses entity that promotes Oregon’s growing equestrian industry. In 2012, Hall will serve her fifth term as president of the nonprofit Oregon Hunter Jumper Association, which promotes the state’s hunter/jumper industry. Her animal law firm, focusing on equine legal matters, routinely represents horse trainers, breeders and owners, equine facility owners, and veterinarians in a wide range of matters, including business, civil litigation and transactional matters. She serves as the 2012 chair of the OSB’s Animal Law Section.
Three members of Barran Liebman of Portland have been appointed to leadership positions in the Portland legal community. Managing Partner Ed Harnden, who focuses his practice on employment dispute resolution, arbitration and litigation, will serve as the president of the board for the Multnomah Bar Foundation in 2012. He has been a member of the board for the past two years, serving as development committee chair and as vice president. Andrew Schpak, a partner representing management in employment law matters, has been named as the chair of the OSB New Lawyer Mentoring Committee for the second consecutive year. This recently established program matches new bar members with established lawyer mentors with the goal of providing new lawyers with the guidance they need to succeed in the profession. Traci Ray, director of marketing and client services, has been appointed chair of the OSB Pro Bono Committee, which strives to provide legal access and representation to mid- and low-income Oregonians. Ray served as secretary of the committee in 2011 and currently serves on the Multnomah Bar Association Young Lawyer Section board.
Miller Nash attorney Merril Keane has joined the Northwest China Council’s board of directors. She will help further the organization’s mission to promote greater understanding of Chinese culture, business and contemporary affairs through educational programs, information services and cultural and business tours to China. Keane focuses her practice on general business transactions, international business and trade, tax and executive compensation. She has lived and worked in China and is fluent in Mandarin Chinese.
Donald L. Krahmer Jr., shareholder in the Portland office of Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt, was identified as one of 50 Portlanders who “Possess the Spark and the Will to Craft Portland’s Future” in the January 2012 issue of Portland Monthly magazine. Krahmer, the only lawyer on the list, was cited for his “nurturing of the next generation of leaders.” Krahmer represents a number of Pacific Northwest businesses, investors and entrepreneurs and is a highly regarded adviser to many of the region’s senior executives, boards of directors, and political and nonprofit leaders.
Susan K. Eggum of Cosgrave Vergeer Kester, has been nominated by the International Association of Defense Counsel to serve as vice chair of programs. Eggum has spearheaded a presentation that will take place at the organization’s February 2012 meeting in Rancho Mirage, Calif., and which will focus on obtaining personnel records of domestic and foreign employees in the E.U., Japan and the United States. Eggum, who focuses her practice on employment and business litigation jury trials, is a frequent speaker on civil litigation rules, procedures and trial topics.
Laurel Hook, managing shareholder of Stahancyk, Kent & Hook’s Portland office, was honored recently as a Forty Under 40 award winner, an annual distinction given by the Portland Business Journal. Hook specializes in complex divorce litigation, custody matters and estate planning. Among her many credits, she spearheads the firm’s annual Dress for Success clothing drive, a program that donates interview-appropriate clothing for low-income Oregon women.
Mark Johnson Roberts has been re-elected for another three-year term as Oregon’s ABA sate delegate and chair of the Oregon delegation to the ABA.
Tonkon Torp attorney Steven M. Wilker was a featured speaker at the January meeting of the City Club of Portland. Wilker (along with Janice Thompson, executive director of Common Cause Oregon) addressed the topic, “Are Corporations People? The impact and future of ‘Citizens United.’” Their remarks focused on the effects of the 2010 landmark Supreme Court ruling, Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 U.S. 08-205 (2010),regarding political campaign spending by corporations and unions.
Lane Powell Shareholder William T. Patton was recently appointed to the board of directors of the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon. Patton is also actively involved in other organizations in the community that promote civil liberties, including being a member of the Legal Advisory Committee of Basic Rights Oregon, board chair of the Equity Foundation, member of the board of Listen To Kids, and a presenter at the 2011 OSB Convocation on Equality. He focuses his law practice in the areas of employee benefits and ERISA/life, health and disability litigation.
Holland & Knight has been ranked third among the 30 top-performing law firms in the nation for providing superior client service, according to BTI Consulting Group’s annual survey of nearly 250 corporate counsel and C-level executives. This is the ninth year the firm has been recognized. Additionally, the firm was given the survey’s top honor — the “Best of the Best” — in the area of “Value for the Dollar.”
Stoel Rives announces that partner Mary Hull has been named as one of the Portland Business Journal’s Forty Under 40 for 2012. This award recognizes top business leaders under 40 years old in Portland. Selection is based upon both professional accomplishments and commitment to the community. Hull has a general corporate and securities law practice that emphasizes representing emerging-growth companies. She represents numerous early-stage companies with venture capital and other financings, including two of the eight companies that received financing last year as part of the Portland Seed Fund’s inaugural class.
Stoel Rives has been honored as winner of the Equity Foundation’s Business Award for medium-sized businesses. The award honors Oregon and southwest Washington businesses that embrace the diversity in the workplace. In selecting honorees, the foundation sought companies with employment practices and policies that benefit diverse races, religions, mental or physical abilities, and other minority groups. The award was presented at the annual Equity Awards luncheon in January.
Two Ater Wynne partners have been elected to the boards of local organizations. Brenda Meltebeke, partner and firm chair, has been elected as a member of the Oregon Entrepreneurs Network board of directors, a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to providing activities and mentoring to the entrepreneurial community to foster business growth and employment opportunities in Oregon. Kay Abramowitz, partner and chair of the firm’s wealth preservation and family business groups, has been elected as a member of the Portland State University Foundation board of directors.
Penny Serrurier, a partner in the Portland office of Stoel Rives, has been appointed to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry’s board of trustees. Serrurier focuses her practice on the areas of tax-exempt organizations and charitable giving, estate planning and administration, business succession planning, and personal tax and financial planning. She also serves on the planned-giving committees for Guide Dogs for the Blind and the Oregon Symphony and on the marketing committee for the Oregon Community Foundation.
The Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training has named Josephine County deputy district attorney Ryan Mulkins the 2011 Oregon Child Abuse Prosecutor of the Year. Mulkins, a deputy D.A., for five years, was cited for “passionate dedication to protect our youngest victims, which went above and beyond the call of duty.”
Tonkon Torp business attorney Kristin Bremer has been elected to a three-year term on the board of trustees for the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA). A partner in the firm’s labor and employment practice group, Bremer represents companies and nonprofit organizations in employment and labor matters that include advice and litigation in wage and hour law, collective actions under the Fair Labor Standards Act, labor organizing, sex harassment, family medical leave, disability law and accommodations, and whistle blowing. In the community, she has served on committees for Planned Parenthood and the Campaign for Equal Justice.
Richard Uffelman, shareholder at Buckley Law has recently been admitted to practice before the Tribal Trial and Appellate Courts of the Warm Springs Confederated Tribes, effective Jan. 18. Uffelman divides his practice between transactional practice and litigation, emphasizing the areas of taxation, estate planning and administration, real estate and general business law.
Multnomah County District Attorney Michael D. Schrunk is the 2012 recipient of the University of Oregon School of Law’s Frohnmayer Award for Public Service. A dinner and ceremony will take place at 6 p.m., Friday, April 13, at The Nines in Portland. Schrunk, a 1967 graduate of the law school, has served as the elected district attorney in Multnomah County since 1981, heading the largest and most active district attorney’s office in Oregon, with 120 full time staff and 76 full time attorneys, serving a population of more than 735,000. He is a Portland native who served in the Vietnam War as a captain in the U.S. Marine Corps. He became a Multnomah County prosecutor in 1970 and served in that capacity before moving to private practice in 1977. Schrunk is past president of the Multnomah County Bar Association and the Oregon District Attorneys Association; he was chair of the Regional Organized Crime Narcotics Task Force from 1987 through 2011. Schrunk has been a leader in several innovative justice initiatives, including: the Neighborhood D.A. Unit established in 1990; Drug Court, which began in 1991; and Community Court, which opened its doors in 1998. In 2010, his office worked with the state and other safety partners to implement START (Success Through Accountability, Restitution, and Treatment) Court, a post-sentencing treatment court for felony property offenders. Schrunk is a member of Multnomah County’s Public Safety Coordinating Council and the Multnomah County Criminal Justice Advisory Committee. He has served as a lecturer for the National College of District Attorneys, the National Advocacy Center, the American Prosecutor’s Research Institute, the Drug Enforcement Administration, National Sheriffs’ Association and the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training. He has provided articles and reviews for the Bureau of Justice Assistance and the National Institute of Justice. He has been a consultant to the American University Courts Technical Assistance program and to Zagreb, Croatia for the U.S. Department of Justice. Among numerous national awards, Schrunk has received the Public Service Award for Community Leadership from the U.S. Department of Justice. In 2011, he received the Multnomah Bar Association’s Professionalism Award, the organization’s highest honor, and the Spirit of Portland Award.
Lane Powell received a 2011 Legal Marketing Association Northwest Chapter Your Honor Award in the community relations category for participation in the Northwest Minority Job Fair and for continued commitment to diversifying the legal community. The award was presented at a banquet Jan. 25. the firm is a founding co-sponsor of the Northwest Minority Job Fair, which provides a forum for minority law students to interview with a variety of legal employers. The firm hosted the fair in August of last year.
Senior Assistant Attorney General Lucille Salmony recently transferred to the Oregon Department of Justice’s financial fraud/consumer protection unit. A 1990 graduate of the University of Oregon School of Law, Salmony served as a staff attorney to the Oregon Court of Appeals before joining the Oregon Department of Justice in 2004. Her prior caseload in the trial division (criminal and collateral remedies/post-conviction relief litigation unit) has been assumed by Assistant Attorney General Laura Cadiz.
Cosgrave Vergeer Kester has relocated to Pioneer Tower at 888 S.W. Fifth Avenue in Portland. The move follows a period of growth as the firm has continued to diversify its law practice. “As we expanded the scope of our practice to better serve clients, we simply outgrew our old office space,” says Managing Partner Jill Laney. The firm leased additional square footage in its previous building, but had to split up its personnel on noncontiguous floors. The move reunites the firm’s 36 attorneys and other staff. Also, the firm has redesigned its logo and will launch a new website, www.cosgravelaw.com.
Lawson Fite has joined Markowitz, Herbold, Glade & Mehlhaf as an associate. His practice will focus on business litigation. Fite previously was a trial attorney for the wildlife and marine resources section of the U.S. Department of Justice, Environmental and Natural Resources Division, in Washington, D.C. While at the Department of Justice, he represented the United States in federal civil litigation on wildlife and fisheries laws. Fite has represented a wide range of federal agencies, from the Navy to the Small Business Administration, and litigated protection issues over species from cave bugs to ice seals.
Jon Norling has joined Vestas, supplier of high-tech wind power systems, in its legal and contracting department as corporate counsel. He has served as vice president and general counsel of Columbia Energy Partners, shareholder and chair of the energy practice group of Lane Powell and partner in Lovinger Norling Kaufmann. He also has taught climate change and renewable energy law at Lewis & Clark Law School.
Deborah M. Butler has joined Armstrong Bankruptcy Law Offices as an associate. Butler is a recent graduate of the University of Oregon School of Law, and is a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute and the Oregon Minority Lawyers Association. She previously worked as a member of the firm’s support and research staff. Her practice will focus on consumer bankruptcy and debtor issues, and she will assist clients in the firm’s Eugene, Corvallis and Roseburg offices. She can be reached at (541) 683-6652 or dmb@armstrongbankruptcy.com.
After almost 28 years with the Professional Liability Fund, Bill Kwitman retired at the end of January. He is proud to have been part of the PLF, serving both the bar and the public, and to have watched the PLF and its programs grow. Since he does not golf, Kwitman plans to stay busy as co-president of his synagogue, Havurah Shalom, and with his newfound spare time he plans to be a volunteer lawyer with the Senior Law Project and do lots of hands-on grandparenting. Of course, he will continue to travel the world in search of new adventures.
Tonkon Torp has elected Drew Hagedornand Michael Millender to the partnership, effective Jan 1. Hagedorn is a member of the firm’s government relations and public policy practice group. A long-time public affairs professional, he offers comprehensive government affairs services for Tonkon Torp clients at the state, local and regulatory levels. Hagedorn represents multiple Fortune 500 companies and key industry sectors ranging from commercial construction to hospitals, Oregon’s public universities, broadcast and telecommunications companies, automakers and various nonprofit industry associations. Millender’s practice focuses on tax and employee benefits matters. A member of the firm’s taxation practice group, he represents corporations, partnerships and limited liability corporations in federal, state and local tax matters and the structuring of business transactions. Millender is also a member of the firm’s executive compensation and employee benefits practice group, where he counsels clients on retirement, fringe benefit and equity-based plans, and represents clients in tax and benefits disputes with the IRS and other authorities.
After completing 18 years of service as a Marion County judge, Pamela Abernethy is launching the next phase of her career as a mediator, arbitrator and litigator. She recently joined Harrang Long Gary Rudnick and began working full time in the firm’s Salem office. Abernethy will serve as a mediator, arbitrator and reference judge in all areas of law, including business and tort litigation, transaction disputes, professional liability actions, employment and labor matters, personal injury claims, and family and probate matters. She will also practice as an attorney with an emphasis on government and public law and complex civil litigation.
K&L Gates has added Shiau Yen Chin-Dennis as a corporate associate in its Portland office. Chin-Dennis joins the firm from SAS Institute, a business intelligence software company headquartered in Cary, N.C. Chin-Dennis has extensive experience working on cross-border matters, particularly in the Asia Pacific region. Her practice at K&L Gates focuses on corporate transactions, market entry and exit, restructuring, governance and executive employment agreements.
Scott Shorr, a trial and appellate attorney who specializes in complex business, securities and consumer class action litigation, has been named managing shareholder of Stoll Berne. In his new role, he will take a lead in strategic planning, personnel management and community relations, among other responsibilities. He will share the post with Keith Ketterling, who has served as managing shareholder since 2001. Shorr was the arguing counsel before the United States Supreme Court in GEICO General Ins. Co. v Edoand Safeco Ins. Co of America v. Burr. Shorr practices in state and federal trial court, all appellate courts and before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (formerly the NASD). He is a co-author of the OSB’s chapters on “Fraud, Misrepresentation, and Unfair Trade Practices” and “Class Actions.” He has also written numerous articles and given presentations to other attorneys regarding securities law, litigation and appeals.
Southern Oregon attorney Karen M. Oakes has opened a second office in Medford, representing consumers in bankruptcy, consumer protection, debt collection defense and the FDCPA (Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and Fair Credit Reporting Act) and landlord-tenant law. The former deputy district attorney and law clerk has been a member of the Oregon State Bar since 1998. The name of her practice has changed from the Law Office of Karen M. Oakes P.C., to Oakes Law Offices. She can be reached at 6502 S. Sixth St., Klamath Falls, OR 97603, or 1730 E. McAndrews Road, Suite B, Medford, OR 97504; phone: (541) 273-1650; fax: (866) 227-0792; or email: karen@oakesla woffice.com.
Christopher S. K. Ling has joined Cartwright Whitman Baer as an associate. He will join the firm’s established practice focusing on estate and trust litigation, elder financial abuse and contested protective proceedings.
Samuels Yoelin Kantor has hired Benjamin Leedy as an associate in the firm’s real estate group. Leedy’s practice focuses on the areas of commercial real estate, real estate development and finance, and retail and office leasing. Leedy previously was an associate attorney with the Portland office of Holland & Knight. An experienced presenter and author, Leedy has spoken and written about a variety of topics including commercial mortgage loan workouts, employment contracts and legal developments affecting the management of golf courses and private clubs.
Jennifer Kampsula has joined the Fort Vancouver National Trust as director of gift planning. For almost 12 years, she practiced with Kell, Alterman & Runstein. The 2004 recipient of the trust’s General George C. Marshall Public Leadership Award, Kampsula is a member of the trust’s Marshall Award Recipients Society (MARS). She just finished a two-year term as president of MARS and served on the trust’s board in this capacity. She can be reached at the Fort Vancouver National Trust, O.O. Howard House, 650 Anderson St., Vancouver, WA 98661; phone: (360) 992-1815; email: jennifer.kampsula@fortvan.org.
Bryant, Emerson & Fitch announces that Alison M. Emerson has been made a partner in the firm. Emerson was a deputy district attorney in Deschutes County from 2004 to 2006 and was named DUII Prosecutor of the Year in 2006. She has been an associate attorney at the firm since 2007, practicing in family law, criminal defense, guardianships and conservatorships. She is licensed to practice law in both Oregon and California.
Sarah D. Foreman has joined Bryant, Emerson & Fitch as an associate. Foreman worked for the Deschutes County district attorney’s office as a criminal prosecutor for four years and as an assistant attorney general for the Oregon Department of Justice for three years as a civil litigator. She works in the area of civil litigation on a wide variety of other cases.
Steven Boyd Seal has joined Williams, Love, O’Leary & Powers as a full- time associate in the Portland office after working with the firm on a contract basis for the past two years. He received his J.D. with honors from Lewis & Clark Law School, where he served on the Lewis & Clark Law Review and co-wrote a chapter on constitutional law in Interpreting Oregon Law (OSB Legal Pubs 2009).
James D. Howsley has joined the “Dirt Law” practice group of Jordan Ramis in the firm’s Vancouver office as a shareholder. His primary areas of practice include land use and real estate development, environmental and natural resources, and government and regulatory affairs. He has extensive experience in land use approval and permitting, annexations, code amendments, development agreements, legislation, ballots and lobbying. In addition to his law practice, Howsley has an active role in the Vancouver Rotary Club and serves as a board member for Columbia River Mental Health Services.
Dole, Coalwell, Clark, Mountainspring & Mornarich announces attorneys Jason Montgomery and Jim Forresterhave become partners in the firm. Montgomery’s practice focuses on civil litigation and appeals, with particular emphasis in employment, real estate, business and municipal litigation. He also represents clients in contested family matters. Forrester’s practice focuses on family law, adoptions, real estate, business law, elder law, estate planning and foreclosures. He also serves as prosecuting attorney for the cities of Roseburg, Winston and Myrtle Creek.
Ball Janik attorneys Justin D. Leonard and Daniel R. Webert have been elected partners of the firm. Leonard joined the firm in 2005. His principal area of practice is bankruptcy and creditor rights. He regularly represents bankruptcy trustees, regional banks and other creditors in litigation and workouts, often in the bankruptcy context. He advises business debtors and trustees in chapter 11 reorganizations and liquidations, as well as in preference litigation. Webert’s practice focuses on residential and commercial construction litigation and the representation of community associations. He is an integral member of the firm’s regional and growing national practice emphasizing design and construction defect claims. As a litigator, Webert has participated as primary counsel in numerous multimillion dollar construction defect cases, including residential, multifamily and commercial buildings. He has lectured and presented at seminars on a variety of matters affecting homeowners, homeowners’ associations and community managers.
Stoel Rives announces the election of three new partners in the firm’s Portland office, effective Jan. 1. Sean C. Gay is a member of the firm’s construction and design group. Gay has substantial experience drafting and negotiating construction and design contracts. He also has extensive public contracting experience, having litigated bid protests and contract disputes. His background includes civil engineering education and experience as a project manager. Eric J. Kodesch, of the taxation group, has a practice that encompasses a wide array of federal income tax and state and local tax issues in both transactional and litigation matters, including general business planning, financial transactions, trust taxation, executive compensation and choice of entity issues. He specializes in international tax aspects of federal income tax law and regularly represents clients in Oregon Tax Court controversies involving Oregon corporation excise tax and property tax. Geoffrey B. Tichenor of the environmental compliance group has broad experience representing clients before state and federal agencies. He helps clients navigate the maze of requirements that arise under state and federal environmental laws applicable to air emissions, water discharges, storage tanks, waste management, contaminated lands, chemical storage and spills.
Three Oregon lawyers have been named to Landye Bennett Blumstein’s 2012 management committee. The committee members are: Stuart K. Cohen,Karna R. Gustafson and Richard S. Yugler. In addition, the firm named Jennifer L. Gates (photo) and Jason A. Wright (photo), both in the Oregon office, as equity partners.
Gregory L. Powell has been appointed chair of the financial services practice group at Tonkon Torp. A partner in the firm’s business department, Powell’s practice is focused on regulatory and compliance matters for broker/dealers and registered investment advisers. He also serves as general counsel to closely held companies and has represented businesses of all sizes in securities and corporate finance matters as well as mergers and acquisitions. Powell joined Tonkon Torp in 2009 after nearly 20 years of practicing law in Portland and Washington, D.C.
James T. Massey has joined Reno & Cavanaugh as of counsel. Massey’s practice will emphasize federal regulatory and policy advocacy, litigation, land use, real estate and agricultural law.
Denise Gorrell has been named a partner at Samuels Yoelin Kantor in Portland. She joins the firm’s business and litigation practice groups. A Seattle native, Gorrell draws upon extensive knowledge of restaurants and the wine industry to inform her real property and commercial law practice. She spent 11 years on the Seattle hospitality scene, including stints at the award-winning Wild Ginger restaurant and wine retailer Esquin. She helps hospitality industry clients navigate complex, important issues such as business formation, real estate agreements, trademarks, OLCC rules and other governmental regulations. She also maintains a successful business and fiduciary litigation practice and frequently represents clients on real estate disputes, business dissolutions and trust contests. An active member of the community, she is a board member and immediate past land-use chair for the Roseway Neighborhood Association in Northeast Portland. In 2008, the Multnomah Bar Association Young Lawyers Section awarded her an Award of Merit for her efforts to inspire other attorneys to perform pro bono work.
Dunn Carney announces that Kelly A. Struhs has joined the firm as of counsel. Struhs will focus her practice on real estate law, specifically commercial real estate transactions. She was in-house counsel at Pacific Realty Associates (PacTrust). She is currently involved with local chapters of Commercial Association of Realtors, Commercial Real Estate Women, and the Urban Land Institute, along with the Multnomah Bar Association and Oregon Women Lawyers.
Dunn Carney announces that John R. Barhoum and Jeana M. McGlasson became partners at the firm, effective Jan. 1. Barhoum is a civil litigator and trial lawyer who specializes in commercial and business litigation, real estate disputes, employment law and tort defense. He has extensive experience in the state and federal courts of Oregon and Washington. McGlasson is a member of the firm’s wills and estates team and tax team. Her practice focuses on estate planning, probate and trust administration, guardianships and conservatorships and taxation. She has an LL.M., in taxation, and in addition to being an attorney, she holds an Oregon CPA license.
Davis Wright Tremaine has named two attorneys from its Portland office to partnership.Steven C. Davis, of the business and corporate finance group, focuses his practice on business transactions and assisting public companies with their reporting obligations. William D. Miner, of the litigation group, focuses his practice on litigation at the trial court level of state and federal courts and private arbitration.
Cliff Weston has been appointed associate general counsel with Microban International. While his practice remains focused on international patent and trademark law, it includes technology development agreements and general contracts as well as FTC and FDA regulatory compliance. Weston was in private practice in Portland before joining MBI in May 2005 as patent counsel.
Jason Mahan has been made a full partner of Aller Morrison Robertson. Mahan worked from 2003 to 2007 as a deputy district attorney in the Douglas County district attorney’s office. He has been in private practice in Roseburg since 2007, joining the firm in 2010 as an associate. He will continue practicing personal injury law. As a result of his addition as a partner, the firm has changed its name to Aller Robertson Mahan.
Amy E. Geerhart recently joined Saal-feld Griggs as an associate in the corporate practice group. She received her law degree in 2011 from Willamette University College of Law, where she was executive editor on the law review.
Lisa LeSage, former associate dean and director of business law programs and executive director of the Small Business Legal Clinic at Lewis & Clark Law School, has accepted a position as senior legal adviser to the ABA Rule of Law Initiative, Middle East and North Africa Division, based in Istanbul, Turkey, beginning in January. She will continue on as a special adviser to Lewis & Clark Law School.
After 25 years as managing attorney for Cummins, Goodman, Fish, Denley & Vickers in Newberg, Reuel Fish is moving on to pursue non-law-related endeavors. His colleagues wish him the best in his new wine, real estate and development activities. Effective Jan. 1, the firm is now known as Cummins, Goodman, Denley & Vickers. The firm continues to focus on employment law, general insurance and business litigation, workers’ compensation defense and OSHA and safety-related litigation throughout the Pacific Northwest.
Perkins Coie has promoted Peggy Crane to of counsel in the environment, energy & resources practice in Portland. Crane practices in a wide variety of environmental areas, including site investigations and remediations under CERCLA, as well as state Superfund, due diligence for real estate and corporate transactions, brownfields redevelopment and more.
Severin A. Carlson was elected to the board of directors (partner) of the Nevada firm Kaempfer Crowell. He is a partner in the firm’s Reno office, practicing primarily in natural resources and commercial litigation. He can be reached at (775) 852-3900 or scarlson@kcnvlaw.com.
Fisher & Phillips announces the opening of new offices in Boston and Memphis. Including the Portland office, this brings the firm to 27 offices and 270 attorneys serving clients nationwide.
Mary L. Dougherty has joined Powers, McCulloch & Bennett as a senior associate. After clerking for two years at the Oregon Tax Court, Dougherty opened a sole law practice emphasizing tax, business and estate planning. In her new position, she will continue to represent individuals and closely held businesses with transactions and tax issues. She is the current treasurer of Queen’s Bench, the Portland chapter of Oregon Women Lawyers. She is also a co-founder of the Taxation Section Mentor Program and a past chair of the New Tax Lawyer Committee.
Shannon M. Vincent has joined Gordon & Polscer as an associate. Her practice will focus on insurance coverage and litigation. She was previously an associate at Bullivant Houser Bailey in Portland, where she specialized in civil litigation. Vincent chairs the Oregon Women Lawyers Leadership Committee, and she is the treasurer of the U.S. District Court of Oregon Historical Society board of directors.
Gary Roberts left Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt in December and joined Jordan M. Roberts in opening a new law firm, Roberts Law Group, 520 Yamhill St., Suite 208, Portland, OR 97204; phone: (503) 290-2410. Their practice consists of a wide range of civil matters, including will and trust disputes, divorce, business and personal litigation and protection of the elderly.
After nearly 20 years at Cozen O’Connor in Seattle, Peter J. Mintzer recently opened a Seattle office for a Los Angeles-based firm, Chamberlin, Keaster & Brockman. Mintzer’s practice continues to focus on insurance coverage and other commercial litigation matters, with a focus on environmental, product and construction defect as well as professional liability matters. Mintzer also serves as a mediator and arbitrator in an array of civil matters.
Cynthia Newton has broken the previous record for number of Swanson, Thomas & Coon associates making partner (zero). The firm shall henceforth be known as Swanson, Thomas, Coon & Newton. Newton joined the firm in 2004 after law school and 10 years of litigation adventures with the Walkup Law firm, where she focused on trying medical negligence actions in the wilds of northern California. She now practices in the personal injury arena, embracing the firm’s tradition of advocating for injured bicyclists and pedestrians. She recently served as chair of the bar’s Uniform Civil Jury Instruction Committee. She is a member of the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association and the Multnomah Bar Association.
Thomas A. Noble has joined the Oregon Legal Center in West Linn. While attending the University of Oregon School of Law, Noble clerked with the Oregon Department of Justice in the child advocacy division and also clerked for the Hon. Carol J. Bispham at the Linn County courthouse. More recently, Noble was a court-certified law student at the Clackamas County district attorney’s office. He plans to focus his practice on estate planning, probate, trust administration and fiduciary litigation.
Marshall L. Wilde recently returned from a deployment to Afghanistan with the Oregon Air National Guard. While deployed, he served as the chief, rule of law, for Gen. David Petraeus, working on reconstruction of Afghanistan’s justice institutions. (An audio discussion about his deployment is available at www.klcc.org.) With his demobilization, he has returned to Harris Law Group to practice family law, probate and estate planning. He volunteers with the bar, the Network Charter School and the Eugene City Club.
Shannon L. Hall has joined Harris Law Group as an associate attorney. Hall earned her J.D. from Willamette University College of Law in 2010. She was a legal assistant before law school and brings that wealth of background knowledge to her law practice. Hall will focus her practice on family law matters, but will also be exploring other areas as well.
Karen Nashiwa has joined Folawn, Alterman & Richardson as an associate, where she will practice in business and real estate transactions and commercial disputes. Before joining the firm, Nashiwa was a trial attorney for a nation-wide insurance company. Prior to moving to Portland, she was a tax associate at a large Honolulu accounting firm. She is admitted to practice in Oregon, Washington and Hawaii. Contact her at karen@FARlawfirm.com or (503) 517-8202.
Janice L. Mackey has become a shareholder in Hutchinson, Cox, Coons, DuPriest, Orr & Sherlock. Mackey’s practice focuses on estate planning, trust administration and probate, business succession planning and business and real property transactions. Mackey is a frequent lecturer on business and estate planning issues. She is a member of the Estate Planning Council, Eugene-Springfield Tax Association and is on the board of directors of Eugene Opera. She can be reached at (541) 686-9160 or at jmackey@eugene-law.com.
Stoel Rives has added three new partners to its labor and employment group with the addition of Karen L. O’Connor,Brenda K. Baumgart and Todd Hanchett. All were previously partners at Barran Liebman. O’Connor’s practice includes counseling and litigation on complex employment issues, including leave laws, workplace harassment and discrimination, discipline and documentation, and drug and alcohol issues. She represents clients before Oregon and Washington state and federal courts and administrative tribunals. She co-teaches in the human resources program at Portland State University and is a frequent speaker in the community. Baumgart focuses her practice on employment-related counseling and litigation as well as appellate work. Her litigation practice includes representing employers in both federal and state courts, as well as handling agency charges before BOLI and the EEOC. She conducts on-site training and internal workplace investigations for clients, provides traditional labor support to clients and handles grievances and labor arbitrations. Hanchett represents employers in litigation and labor law matters. He represents clients before state and federal courts in Oregon and Washington, as well as in arbitrations and before the National Labor Relations Board. A frequent speaker and author on a variety of employment and labor law topics, he currently serves as a director for the Oregon chapter of the Federal Bar Association and is the chair of the employment section of the Oregon Association of Defense Counsel.
Miller Nash has named Dennis P. Rawlinson and Kieran J. Curley as the firm’s new chair and managing partner, respectively. Both assumed their new roles on Jan. 1. Rawlinson becomes the firm’s first chair. In this newly created role, his primary responsibility will be overseeing the firm’s strategic direction and representing Miller Nash in the business and legal community. While the position is new, the role reflects work that Rawlinson has been doing for the firm over many years. Rawlinson has more than 30 years of trial experience in state and federal courts in the Pacific Northwest and has handled a substantial number of trials and arbitrations on a wide range of commercial issues. Rawlinson will maintain his successful commercial litigation practice during his tenure as chair. Curley, who is taking over the managing partner role from Donald A. Burns, is the youngest managing partner the firm has ever appointed. He will be responsible for strategic implementation as well as the internal management of the firm. Curley, a member of the firm’s business litigation group, joined Miller Nash in 2001. Before attending law school, Curley came to the Pacific Northwest through the Jesuit Volunteer Corps and held accounting and finance positions with Hillhaven Corp., and the Providence Health System. Burns became managing partner in June 2007. He helped the firm to navigate the economic downturn and oversaw the acquiring of lawyers from the Newcomb, Sabin, Schwartz & Landsverk firm in 2009. During his tenure, the firm received awards for Most Admired Company, Corporate Philanthropy and Healthiest Employer, with Burns receiving CEO of the Year for professional services firms in 2010. Burns will return to his employee benefits practice full time.
Portland attorneys David Sacksand Livia Goetz have founded a new law firm, Sacks & Goetz and are currently accepting new cases. The firm’s practice areas include juvenile delinquency, juvenile dependency, termination of parental rights, criminal defense, domestic relations, adoptions, guardianships, personal injury, investment fraud and Social Security disability. Also joining the firm is attorney Matthew Washchuk, whose primary areas of focus include Social Security disability matters, juvenile law and criminal defense. Contact them at www.sacksgoetz.com.
Thomas W. Purcell has joined Martin Bischoff as an associate. Purcell received his B.A., from the University of Oregon and his J.D., from Lewis & Clark Law School.
The Lake Oswego firm of Assayag Mauss has promoted Matthew A. Goldberg to partnership. Goldberg represents financial institutions in all manner of creditors’ rights proceedings, in both federal and state courts, as well as bankruptcy trustees and other clients in commercial and real estate litigation. In December 2011, he finished a two-year term on the executive committee of the OSB Debtor-Creditor section. He is a former associate editor of the ABA publication, Litigation News.
Ryan O’Connor and Jason Weber have opened a law firm, O’Connor Weber, in Portland. They will focus on trial and appellate criminal defense and representing individuals and businesses in administrative actions, including advising businesses on compliance with state and federal regulatory laws. Weber spent the last four years at the Oregon Division of Finance and Corporate Securities, where he enforced a variety of regulatory statutes, including Oregon’s securities and mortgage lending laws. He was also appointed as a special prosecutor by the elected district attorneys in Multnomah, Washington, Clackamas, Jackson, Linn and Lincoln counties. As a special prosecutor, he pursued complex criminal cases including securities fraud and racketeering and obtained convictions in all cases. Weber previously worked as a deputy district attorney in Umatilla County. O’Connor spent the last six years as a deputy public defender at the Office of Public Defense Services in Salem, where he represented indigent clients before the Oregon Court of Appeals and Oregon Supreme Court in criminal cases and on judicial review of parole board decisions. He has litigated hundreds of cases on appeal and has experience with a broad range of offenses, from DUII to aggravated murder. He has also testified before the legislature on bills relating to criminal law. Both are graduates of Notre Dame Law School. They can be reached http://oconnorweber.com.
Dana Krawczuk has joined Perkins Coie in Portland as of counsel in the real estate and land use practice. She was previously with Ball Janik. Krawczuk has represented clients in a number of high-profile land use and annexation cases that have helped shape the law of the region. She has extensive experience with multijurisdictional, long-range planning efforts, such as Urban Reserve Area designations and Urban Growth Boundary expansions.
Allyson S. Krueger has joined Dunn Carney as of counsel. Krueger’s practice will focus on employment law and business litigation. Krueger previously practiced at Hitt Hiller Monfils Williams. She has been listed by Chambers and Partners as one of America’s leading lawyers for business, employment law, in 2007-2011, and was listed in Oregon Super Lawyers, 2009-2011.
David F. White joined the legal department of Portland General Electric in January. He was previously with Tonkon Torp, where he was a partner specializing in energy law and co-chair of the firm’s energy practice group. While at Tonkon, White provided significant support for PGE in state and federal regulatory matters and BPA issues. White has also worked with AT&T in Denver. He is a member of the OSB House of Delegates, the Board of Bar Examiners, the executive committee for the OSB Energy, Telecommunications and Utility Section and is a member of the Lake Oswego Library advisory board.
Jay Smith-Hill has joined Lane Powell as an attorney in the intellectual property and technology practice group, where he will divide his practice between litigation and patent prosecution, and performing freedom-to-operate analyses. Smith-Hill previously was an attorney at Chernoff Vilhauer, where he focused his practice on intellectual property litigation and patent prosecution. He also has experience providing practical and effective intellectual property strategies and solutions to small businesses and entrepreneurs who are often operating with limited resources.
Buckley Law announces that Robert J. Horvat has been named voting shareholder, effective Jan. 1. Horvat will continue to focus his practice on the representation of individuals and businesses with an emphasis on commercial real estate, retail, business, corporate and financing transactions. He is admitted to practice in both Oregon and Washington and is a member of the ABA and the Oregon and Washington bars.
His colleagues at Hutchinson, Cox, Coons, DuPriest, Orr & Sherlock congratulate the firm’s founding shareholder, Stephen A. Hutchinson, on his recent retirement. Hutchison founded the firm in 1970 and continued as a guiding force over the last 40 years. He has been active in the Oregon State Bar, as well as in many community boards, organizations and schools. He was named to the Marist High School Hall of Fame and was designated as the Lane Council of Governments’ Outstanding Citizen. His colleagues wish him many years of new adventures and endeavors in retirement.
Sally Carter recently joined the Office of General Counsel at the Bonneville Power Administration, where she will continue to focus on labor and employment law. Prior to becoming a labor and employment lawyer, Carter was a prosecutor in El Paso, Texas. She is the past chair of the OSB Civil Rights Section, and she recently received certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR).