Perkins Coie is pleased to celebrate the 40th anniversary of its Portland office. The office, which first opened its doors for business in 1983, is today one of Portland’s largest and most successful law firms, with 121 lawyers and business professionals supporting a wide range of clients.
Drawing on Perkins Coie’s national platform and local capabilities, the firm’s Portland lawyers counsel clients on corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, emerging companies and venture capital, securities, litigation, real estate and land use, intellectual property, environment, energy, and resources, and bankruptcy law, among other matters.
“We’re excited to celebrate forty years of our thriving Portland office and our clients’ many successes along the way,” said Christopher Rich, Perkins Coie’s Portland office managing partner. “Our ability to provide effective legal counsel for clients both here in Portland and nationally is made possible by our dedicated and talented lawyers’ and business professionals’ commitment to our work and the community.”
The Portland office is also home to a notable team of accomplished trial lawyers, including four partners who are members of the American College of Trial Lawyers. Lawyers across the office are active in the local business community, including through the Technology Association of Oregon, the Oregon Entrepreneurs Network, and local chapters of the Association of Corporate Counsel and The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE). Its lawyers and business professionals are also committed to pro bono legal work, such as the recent all-day immigration legal clinic hosted with client Intel Corporation.
Opening an office in Portland seemed like the next logical step for Perkins Coie in 1983, as many Seattle lawyers were seeking to expand the firm’s presence and client capabilities across the Pacific Northwest. Recently retired labor and litigation partner Paul Fortino was an early trailblazer in helping to establish Perkins Coie’s reputation in the Portland market.
Perkins Coie has also long been recognized for its commitment to fostering a diverse and inclusive culture. The firm has been ranked as the #8 U.S. employer among the “Best Workplaces in Consulting & Professional Services 2022™” by Great Place to Work®, recognized as one of Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For®” for 20 consecutive years, and named an Inclusion Blueprint Champion by Diversity Lab. The firm has also earned the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s top rating of 100% in the Corporate Equality Index, a national benchmarking survey on corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ+ workplace equality, for 14 straight years.
