Stoel Rives LLP is a U.S. business law firm with 10 office locations in seven U.S. states and Washington, D.C. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon in the Park Avenue West Tower, it is the largest law firm in the state of Oregon. With 359 attorneys and a total staff of 721 as of 2017. Stoel Rives is considered a leader in the Pacific Northwest in corporate, energy, environmental, intellectual property, labor and employment, land use and construction, litigation, natural resources and renewable energy law.
History
Stoel Rives traces its lineage back to the Portland-based firm of Carey & Kerr, which was founded in 1907. At the time the firm was located at Third and Stark streets in the Chamber of Commerce Building. In 1911, it moved to the Yeon Building. In 1931, the firm's name became Carey, Hart, Spencer & McCulloch, with the latter being Charles E. McCulloch for which McCulloch Stadium in Salem, Oregon, is named. In 1970, the then named Davies, Biggs, Strayer, Stoel and Boley moved to the Georgia-Pacific Building on sw Fifth Avenue. In 1979, the firm merged with another large Portland firm, Rives, Bonyhadi and Smith, founded in 1935, to become Stoel, Rives, Boley, Fraser and Wyse. In 1987, Stoel Rives merged with Seattle-based Jones, Grey and Bayley, founded in 1912, to become Stoel, Rives, Boley, Jones & Grey. The firm expanded into Boise, Idaho in 1991, Salt Lake City, Utah in 1992, and California in 2001, establishing a presence in Sacramento, San Francisco and Lake Tahoe with the acquisition of Washburn, Briscoe & McCarthy. The firm's geographic footprint expanded further with the opening of offices in San Diego, California, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Anchorage, Alaska and Washington, D.C.. The firm became Stoel Rives in 1996. In January 2020, Stoel Rives named Melissa A. Jones as the Firm Managing Partner. Jones follows James Torgerson, the first-ever Alaska-based managing partner of a major U.S. law firm. Stoel Rives moved into the new Park Avenue West Tower in May 2016. In July 2017, the firm laid off 17 administrative employees and outsourced staffing for its reception, IT, concierge, catering, and records departments to DTI, a legal process outsourcing company in order to strategically modernize the firm to compete in the current legal market.
Rankings
Leading independent legal researcher Chambers and Partners currently rated 92 Stoel Rives lawyers among the best in their practice areas. The firm's Renewable and Alternative Energy Law practice and its Food and Beverage practice are both rated among the best in the United States by Chambers, with another 24 practice areas receiving recognition across multiple states.
The firm currently has 137 attorneys and 67 legal practice categories listed in Best Lawyers in America,.
In its "Best Law Firms in America" survey, U.S. News & World Reportranks Stoel Rives national Tier 1 for Construction Law, Corporate Law, Energy Law, Environmental Law, Litigation - Construction, Litigation - Environmental, Natural Resources Law, Real Estate Law, and Timber Law. In addition, the firm received 97 metropolitan Tier 1 rankings, 24 metropolitan Tier 2 rankings, and 7 metropolitan Tier 3 rankings.
Stoel Rives is rated among the nation's 30 Best Law Firms for Outstanding Client Service, in an independent study conducted by the BTI Consulting Group.
Publications
Stoel Rives publishes a series of "Law of" handbooks, intended to provide a general overview of the legal and business issues involved in specific emerging or rapidly developing areas of law. The series include ''The Law of Wind—A Guide to Business and Legal Issues, Lava Law—Legal Issues in Geothermal Energy Development, The Law of Solar Energy—A Guide to Business and Legal Issues, The Law of Outdoor Industries—A Guide to Business and Legal Issues, and The Construction Lien in Washington—A Legal Analysis for the Construction Industry.
