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On July 10, Governor Tina Kotek announced the judicial appointment of Referee Michael J. Riedel to the Multnomah County family court bench. Riedel was elected in the May primary to fill the vacancy created by the upcoming retirement of Chief Family Court Judge Susan Svetkey and his appointment is effective immediately.

News release

The Proposed Supplementary Local Rules (SLRs) for the Fourth Judicial District are available for review here.

The draft rules will be submitted to the State Court Administrator on September 1. If approved, the rules will become effective on February 1, 2025.

Comments or questions about the proposed changes, as well as questions about the process, may be directed to the court at MUL.Public.Information@ojd.state.or.us.

The MBA Deposition Guidelines document has been updated and may be found under "Resources" on the Courts page.

These guidelines are the result of a collaboration between the bench and bar. They are meant to be read in conjunction with the applicable rules to help avoid disputes during depositions. No attempt is made to cover every potential area of dispute; instead, the intent is to address common issues in discovery depositions. Other references include OSB Publications Civil Pleading & Litigation and the Multnomah County Judges Civil Motion Consensus Statement.

On February 16, Governor Tina Kotek announced that she will appoint Pamela Haan and Christine (Chris) Martin to the Multnomah County Circuit Court. Haan will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Michael S. Loy, and Martin will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Kathryn L. Villa-Smith. Both positions will be assigned to the court’s Family Law Department. The appointments are effective immediately.

“Pam Haan and Chris Martin have dedicated their careers to serving the most vulnerable in our community,” Governor Kotek said. “I look forward to seeing each of them bring their significant family law expertise and commitment to justice for every community member to the family law bench.”

Pamela Haan (she/her) has spent the entirety of her 24-year legal career as a legal aid attorney, most recently serving as a supervising attorney at Legal Aid Services of Oregon Portland Regional Office. Haan earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from Washington University in St. Louis and her law degree from Lewis & Clark College Law School. In addition to her legal work, she serves on the Executive Committee of the Multnomah County Family Violence Coordinating Council, of which she is also a past chair, and the Domestic and Sexual Violence Continuum Leadership Council.  She served on the Multnomah County Circuit Court Family Court Enhancement Project Management Team from 2014 to 2018. Haan has also been a part of the Multnomah County Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team, the Multnomah County Domestic Violence Enhanced Response Team Steering Committee, and the Clackamas County Vicarious Trauma Response Initiative.

A photograph of Judge Haan is available here.

Chris Martin (she/her) is a public defender at Multnomah Defenders, Inc., where she represents children and families in juvenile cases. Martin graduated from Marylhurst University and earned her law degree from Lewis & Clark Law School. After law school, Martin clerked for Multnomah County Circuit Court Judge Diana Stuart. Afterward, Martin joined St. Andrew Legal Clinic as a staff attorney, where Martin served low-income Oregonians in family law cases. Martin also worked as an adjunct faculty member at Portland Community College from 2018 to 2021. In addition to her current work as a public defender, Martin volunteers with the Multnomah County Children’s Representation Project, representing children in high-conflict divorce cases, and for the St. Andrew Legal Clinic Night Clinic.

A photograph of Judge Martin is available here.

News release

On August 16, Governor Tina Kotek announced the appointment of Aruna Masih, a long-time employment, worker, and civil rights attorney, to the Oregon Supreme Court. Aruna, who currently serves on the MBA Board of Directors, will be the first Punjabi, Indian American and South Asian Oregon Supreme Court Justice. 

"Aruna Masih is a decorated civil rights attorney who has worked on behalf of Oregonians for over twenty-five years in both her career and community service," said Governor Kotek. “As a practicing attorney, Aruna will bring direct and recent experience working for people - an invaluable perspective that will strengthen the current Oregon Supreme Court. Aruna’s dedication to public service and passion for equal access to justice is also evident from her long-time leadership in advancing equity and diversity in the legal field. I look forward to seeing her continued service to Oregonians as a Supreme Court Justice.”
 
Aruna (she/her) has been a practicing attorney in Oregon for over 25 years. For most of her career, she has been a partner in the law firm of Bennett Hartman LLP, providing representation in a variety of areas, including employment, labor, appellate, professional licensure, contract, and constitutional law. Masih has also represented clients at McKanna Bishop Joffe LLP. Her legal background features a significant breadth of subject matter and a depth of technical expertise in nuanced Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) and pension case law.

Aruna's swearing-in is imminent. Details of her investiture will be announced by the Oregon Judicial Department at a future date. 

The MBA leadership congratulates Aruna and wishes her all the best in her new role.

News release

The Proposed Supplementary Local Rules for the Fourth Judicial District are available here for review and comment.

These rules will be submitted to the State Court Administrator on September 1. If approved, the rules will become effective on February 1, 2024. 

Please direct questions and comments to MUL.Public.Information@ojd.state.or.us. 
 

Chief Justice Meagan Flynn has signed CJO 23-020, which approves changes to the Uniform Trial Court Rules (UTCR) effective August 1, with one change effective February 1, 2024. Media release

Changes of special note: require a person remotely observing or participating in a proceeding to obtain permission before transmitting an electronic writing directly and specifically to a witness, until the witness is excused; in criminal cases, allow a party to request that a pretrial motion hearing be held prior to the date of trial, if so requested, the hearing must be held at least 7 days before trial, absent good cause; allow parties to agree to appear remotely to resolve cases outside of the court with jurisdiction over the county where the defendant is in custody; remove plea agreements and negotiations from the type of activity that must be completed pursuant to certain deadlines; allow persons to request accommodation for expression of milk; allow joint petitions in certain domestic relations actions; and allow courts to accept oral Informal Domestic Relations Trial (IDRT) related waivers and to allow a party to opt in or out of the IDRT process at any time prior to trial.

Public comment on the amendment of Uniform Trial Court Rule (UTCR) 3.180, 4.010, and 7.010 is invited and may be submitted to the OJD by September 22. More information.

The May 24 MBA Annual Meeting, Dinner and Judges Reception recognized exemplary members of the legal profession, Dave Markowitz, Markowitz Herbold, with the MBA Professionalism Award, and Judge Rima Ghandour, Multnomah County Circuit Court, with the MBA Diversity Award. Other members of the legal community who were honored for their service included MBA Award of Merit recipients, Judge Jacqueline L. Alarcón, Emily Teplin Fox, Jollee Faber Patterson, and Adele J. Ridenour; YLS Award of Merit recipient Caulin M. Price; YLS Rookies of the Year, Joseph C. Baxter, Marry A. Karam, and Emily C. Templeton; and Pro Bono Award recipients, Bethany A. Bacci, Tiffany Davidson, Elizabeth R. Lemoine, Julie A. Stevens, and April Stone. Thank you, all, for your dedication and service to our profession and the community!

The newly revised Multnomah County Judges Civil Motion Consensus Statement is available here.

The Civil Motion Panel is a voluntary group of judges who have agreed to take on the work of hearing and deciding pretrial motions in civil actions that are not assigned specially to a judge. Civil Motion Panel judges discuss their prior rulings and the similarities and differences in their decisions. When it appears that all of the panel members have ruled similarly over time on any particular question, it is announced to the bar as a consensus of the members.

On February 15, Oregon Supreme Court Justice Adrienne Nelson was confirmed by the US Senate to serve as a federal district court judge. Judge Nelson is the first Black woman to serve on the US District Court of Oregon. Article