Litigation Specialty Group - The Civil Trial Process

The Civil Trial Process

This presentation will provide a summary of the basics of civil trial practice in Multnomah County, from filing to trial, for paralegals and legal support staff. Learn the basic process for filing motions with the court (and ensuring a judge is aware of the motion), the best ways to contact the court, and pitfalls to avoid in trial preparation. The entire lifecycle of a trial will be addressed and attendees will walk away with a cheat sheet of court resources. Additionally, there will an opportunity to ask questions of clerks who have collectively handled over 100 trials and worked in the Presiding court, so feel free to bring your questions!

Presented by: Kendall Gourley-Paterson, Judicial Clerk to the Honorable Kathryn Villa-Smith and Michael Gibson, Judicial Clerk to the Honorable Leslie Roberts

Kendall Gourley-Paterson received her bachelors at the University of Washington and her JD at Santa Clara University School of Law.  She  worked for one year as a Circuit Judicial Clerk, clerking for 30 of the 38 Multnomah County Judges, including three months in Presiding Court.  Kendall is currently Judicial Clerk to the Honorable Kathryn Villa-Smith

Michael Gibson is a Portland native.  After attending Carleton College in Minnesota, and working in Washington DC, he returned to Portland to attend Lewis and Clark Law School.  He has been a judicial clerk with Multnomah County for over a decade, most of that time with the Honorable Leslie Roberts.  In that time he has clerked for over 200 jury trials and countless other proceedings.

1.0 hour of CLE credit

***Please arrive early to allow time to get through security.