REPRESENTATIVE VERDICTS/SETTLEMENTS

$1,000,000 post-verdict settlement in VanValkenburg v. Oregon Dep't of Corrections, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Nos. 17-35205, 17-35222, with significant non-monetary terms to benefit deaf inmates in the Oregon Department of Corrections.

$400,000 verdict in VanValkenburg v. Oregon Dep't of Corrections, 3:14-cv-00916-MO (D Or 2016) on behalf of a former inmate who is deaf and was denied effective communication and equal access to programs, services and activities while in custody

$475,000 settlement in Buckley et al. v. Prometheus Real Estate Group, Inc. et al. on behalf of the estate that alleged that the deceased collapsed in parking lot as the result of the denial of a disabled parking space

$365,000 settlement on behalf of individual alleging sexual harassment and retaliation in the workplace

$350,000 settlement on behalf of individual alleging harassment and retaliation in the workplace

$325,000 settlement in Getman v. OHSU, Case No. 3:21-cv-01408-SB (D Or), on behalf of an individual with a physical disability who brought a state-law disability discrimination claim alleging that she was denied a reasonable modification to the hospital’s COVID no-visitor policy because she needed her caregiver present in the hospital with her at all times due to her disability.

$165,000 settlement in Eichhorn v. Marion County on behalf of individual who alleged the denial of workplace accommodations based on disability

$110,000 settlement and consent decree in Wagner v. Josephine County, 1:18-cv-01437-CL (D Or 2019), on behalf of individual who alleged that public campground was not accessible

$105,000 settlement on behalf of individual who alleged retaliation for engaging in protected whistleblowing conduct

$100,000 settlement on behalf of a minor with disabilities who alleged the denial of equal access in youth activities

SELECTED APPELLATE DECISIONS

DeHart v. Tofte, 326 Or App 720 (2023) (trial court erred in denying anti-SLAPP motion to dismiss plaintiff Newberg School Board members’ doxing action against teachers and community members when the posting of the board members’ employment information was in furtherance of free speech and plaintiffs failed to present prima facie evidence that a reasonable person would suffer severe emotional distress from such conduct when they, as public officials, publicized their own employment information).

Thorstenson v. U.S. Dep’t of Labor, No. 22-70020 (9th Cir. 2023) (unpublished) (Administrative Review Board erred in determining on remand that railroad established its affirmative defense because such a determination was foreclosed by the Ninth Circuit’s prior opinion in Case No. 20-70211).

Thoens v. Safeco Ins. Co., 317 Or App 727, ad’hd to as modified on recons, 319 Or App 450 (2022) (an insurer cannot leave and then later reenter the “safe harbor” provision to avoid attorney fees under ORS 742.061).

Zweizig v. Rote, 368 Or 79 (2021) (Oregon's statutory noneconomic damages cap is not applicable to an award of noneconomic damages in an unlawful employment injury practices claim under ORS 659A.030).

Thorstenson v. U.S. Dep’t of Labor, No. 20-70211 (9th Cir. 2020) (unpublished) (railroad’s enforcement of timely injury reporting rule constituted retaliation under the FRSA when employee could not reasonably comply with rule because his doctor did not take him off work until after the reporting period had passed).

Zweizig v. Rote, 18-35991 (9th Cir. 2020) (holding that individual defendant was not entitled to compel arbitration because he was not party to arbitration agreement).

Bearden v. NWE, Inc., 298 Or App 698 (2019) (affirming trial court’s verdict that employer was liable for coworker sexual harassment of gay male employee and holding that plaintiffs may obtain attorney fees for time earned in BOLI proceedings when reasonably incurred to achieve the success in the litigation).

Leggett v. Samaritan Health Services, Inc. (S066284) (Or Feb 1, 2019) (denying defendant’s petition for writ of mandamus regarding trial court’s denial of defendant’s motion to change venue on grounds of convenience of the parties and witnesses)

Migis v. Autozone, Inc., 362 Or 300 (2017) (denying petition for review in wage and hour class action)

Thoens v. Safeco Ins. Co. of Oregon, 272 Or App 512 (2015) (the trial court erred in excluding evidence in UIM trial that would have allowed the jury to determine that the driver who rear-ended plaintiff was underinsured)

Gibson v. Owyhee Produce LLC, No. 12-35981 (9th Cir. 2014) (Dkt No. 38-1) (vacating district court's grant of partial summary judgment in ELL case)

Amicus Curiae Briefs:

State v. Villeda, 372 Or 1083 (2024) (amicus curiae) (posing close-ended questions to “rehabilitate” a juror is an ineffective way to discern a juror’s actual biases and achieve the goal of selecting a fair and impartial jury).

Abraham v. Corizon Health, Inc., 369 Or 375 (2022) (amicus curiae) (private contractor providing healthcare services in county jail is a "place of public accommodation" and subject to Oregon's anti-discrimination laws under ORS 659A.142(4)).

Mathis v. St. Helens Auto Center, Inc., 367 Or 437 (2020) (amicus curiae) (attorney fees in wage claims cannot be limited through ORCP 54 E offers of judgment).

Jones v. Four Corners Rod and Gun Club, 366 Or 100 (2020) (amicus curiae) (holding that employers who have unlawfully deducted wages may not assert as an affirmative defense the value of the unlawfully deducted benefit to defeat the claim for unpaid wages).

McLaughlin v. Wilson, M.D., 365 Or 535 (2019) (amicus curiae) (holding that antiretaliation provision under ORS 659A.030(1)(f) prohibits post-employment retaliatory conduct).

Brunozzi v. Cable Communications, Inc., No. 15-35623 (9th Cir. 2017) (amicus curiae) (internal complaints to supervisor constitute a "report" under ORS 659A.199 private whistleblower statute).

Johnson v. Gibson, 358 Or 624 (2016) (amicus curiae) (recreational immunity did not extend to City's agents or employees)

Towe v. Sacagawea, Inc., 357 Or 74 (2015) (amicus curiae) (reversing the Court of Appeals and holding that a landowner owes those who travel adjacent to its property the duty of ordinary care)

Blachana, LLC v. Bureau of Labor and Industries, 354 Or 676 (2014) (amicus curiae) (reversing the Court of Appeals and holding that BOLI did not err in deciding that an entity is a successor to a business if it "conducts essentially the same business as conducted by the predecessor.")

Cocchiara v. Lithia Motors, Inc., 353 Or 282 (2013) (amicus curiae) (holding that a prospective employee may bring a promissory estoppel claim or a fraudulent misrepresentation claim based on an employer's representations regarding a job even if the employment is "at will")

Lasley v. Combined Transport, Inc., 351 Or 1 (2011) (amicus curaie) (holding that, in an automobile accident case where one defendant admitted fault, that evidence of that defendant’s intoxication was not relevant to the jury’s substantial factor causation analysis)