Sherrill Corbett

In April 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down non-unanimous jury convictions in criminal cases in Ramos v. Louisiana. A shameful carryover from the Jim Crow era, Louisiana and Oregon were the last two states that allowed non-unanimous criminal convictions when as many as two jurors believed a defendant was innocent. Overnight, more than 260 cases in Oregon became eligible to seek post-conviction relief for unconstitutional non-unanimous convictions. Housed in the Criminal Justice Reform Clinic (CJRC) at Lewis & Clark Law School, the Ramos Project is a statewide pro-bono initiative providing legal assistance to those seeking redress.

Tonkon Torp led Oregon's largest M&A transaction in 2017, the $700 million acquisition of Tualatin-based Pacific Foods of Oregon LLC by Campbell Investment Company. Pacific Foods is an iconic, nationally distributed organic food brand founded in 1987.

Tonkon Torp client Enel Green Power North America (EGPNA) is the North American subsidiary of one of the largest corporations in the world, the Italian electricity company Enel S.p.A. Here's how we helped EGPNA in a renewable energy acquisition.

Tonkon Torp represented its client Vestas, the world's largest manufacturer of wind turbines, in the acquisition of UpWind Solutions, Inc., an independent service provider for wind power plants in nine US states. The $60 million acquisition furthers Vestas's strategic objectives for its North America service business.

Tonkon Torp acted as Oregon corporate counsel for its long-term client The Greenbrier Companies, Inc. in finalizing a 50/50 joint venture with Watco Companies, L.L.C. The venture combines the two companies’ railcar repair, refurbishment and maintenance businesses into a new organization, GBW Railcar Services, LLC.

Albina Head Start, Inc. (AHS), which serves more than 1,000 low-income children and their families in North, Northeast and Southeast Portland, faces the future in a stronger financial position thanks to a significant pro bono effort by Tonkon Torp. Find details and more featured cases here.

Tonkon Torp represented Newberg, Oregon-based CLIMAX Portable Machining and Welding Systems, in its acquisition in 2013 of Houston-based Calder Testers. Founded in 1966, CLIMAX is the world’s largest supplier of portable machine tools for the power generation, shipbuilding, heavy construction and mining, petrochemical and engineering industries.

Earlier this year, Tonkon Torp represented Meridian Rail Acquisitions Corp., a subsidiary of the firm’s long-standing client The Greenbrier Companies, in the sale of substantially all of the equipment utilized in Greenbrier's reconditioned wheelset roller bearing operations in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. The purchaser was The Timken Companies, a global manufacturer of mechanical components and high-performance steel, including bearings.