Blerina Kotori Recognized as One of Portland’s Forty Under 40

Tonkon Torp partner Blerina Kotori has been honored by the Portland Business Journal as one of its 2018 Forty Under 40 award recipients. The annual award recognizes influential business and community leaders in the greater Portland area who are under 40 years old. Judging is based on career accomplishments, business influence and leadership, and community and civic involvement.

Blerina’s career is notable for her strong advocacy on behalf of her clients, and her active participation and leadership roles in the business and charitable community. Among the achievements that helped her to stand out from hundreds of other nominees include:

  • Obtaining favorable results in jury and bench trials for Oregon businesses in matters ranging from harassment and retaliation to breaches of noncompetition agreements and fiduciary duties.
  • Assisting companies in developing strategies for workplace management, such as designing high-level executive recruitment, compensation, or—when necessary—separation of employment.
  • Participating in the Pro Bono Program of U.S District Court of Oregon, which included winning a First Amendment trial against the Oregon Department of Corrections, ending a practice that prevented inmates from drawing on envelopes.
  • Conducting training sessions on implicit bias, sexual harassment issues, managing employee health concerns and leave laws, and other areas crucial to a healthy employment relationship.
  • Volunteering in the community, including board service for the Raphael House and helping refugees complete asylum applications.

Blerina is a partner in the firm’s Labor & Employment Practice Group. She represents and defends employers in a myriad of employment matters, including discrimination, retaliation, harassment, wage and hour compliance, leave laws, and employment benefits.  Blerina also assists companies responding to data security breaches.

She joins a growing number of Tonkon lawyers who have received this award in prior years, including David Forman (2004), Steven Wilker (2005), Jeff Cronn (2008), and Anna Sortun (2017).

Blerina and her Forty Under 40 cohort were celebrated at a reception on June 22.

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