Frank had the good fortune to start his employment as a lawyer with Bill Dale and Thomas H Tongue as his mentors before Tom went to the Oregon Supreme Court and Bill went on the Multnomah County Circuit Court bench.
When the decision was made to dissolve Hicks Tongue Dale & Strader in 1967 Frank had a new job with Hutchinson Schwab & Burdick within one day. His first five years at the new firm were spent assisting Dwight Schwab in complex litigation and handling plaintiff’s personal injury cases through trial on his own.
His trial practice evolved with a greater emphasis on litigation of major commercial disputes from trial through appeal and after 10 years of trial experience his practice evolved further to represent a wide variety of clients in negotiating and documenting transactions, resolving disputes and forming business entities. Happy clients have referred clients in almost every field of professional and business activities.
His clients range from sole proprietors grossing less than $50,000 per year to acting as general counsel for clients in the $5 to $30 million dollar range in annual sales/services and a manufacturing client with annual production exceeding $100 million and 490 employees.
Clients represent almost every side in his areas of practice:
- employers and employees
- buyers, sellers, developers, brokers, investors and managers of real estate
- general contractors and specialty subcontractors
- doctors, lawyers and architects
- tenants and landlords
- manufacturers and consumers
- trusts and estates (administrators and beneficiaries)
More than 20 years ago Frank was approached to act as an arbitrator of a business dispute and hundreds of cases have followed. He has served on the panel of arbitrators of Arbitration Service of Portland, Inc. for over 20 years. He became a firm believer in binding arbitration as an efficient and fair way to resolve disputes when litigation cannot be avoided.
Employment
- Attorney at Law, Oregon State Bar 1966
- U.S. District Court District of Oregon 1966
- Martindale-Hubbell AV rated
Dunn Carney Allen Higgins & Tongue, Portland, Oregon
- Partner 1995 – 2006
- Of Counsel 2007 to present
Schwab Hilton & Howard 1967 - 1995
- Previously, Hutchinson Schwab & Burdick
Hicks Tongue Dale & Strader 1966 - 1967
- (firm dissolved when Bill Dale went on the bench)
Professional Associations & Memberships
- Board of Governors, Oregon State Bar, 2002- 2006
- Chair, Committee on Uniform Jury Instructions, 1978 -1981
- Board of Bar Examiners, 1972 – 1976
- Chair, Review Board, Oregon Bar Examination, 1980 – 1982
- Client Security Fund Committee, 1998 – 2000
- Multnomah Bar Association
- Yamhill County Planning Commission, 1990 – 1995
(Chair 1993 – 1994)
Education
University of Oregon School of Law, 1966
- Honors: Order of the Coif
- Stanford University, A.B. 1963