C. Robert Steringer
Shareholder | Portland Office
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Memberships/Affiliations

Bob is a member of the Oregon State Bar, Washington State Bar, the American Bar Association, the Multnomah Bar Association and the Federal Bar Association. He is admitted to practice before all state courts in Oregon and Washington, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. District Court for the State of Oregon.

Bob currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Oregon State Bar Constitutional Law Section and led the subcommittee responsible for organizing the Bar’s 2009 Constitutional Law continuing legal education program. Bob was recently appointed to the Multnomah Bar Association’s Professionalism Committee, where he will transition the Pro Bono Pledge program developed by the Multnomah Bar Association’s Pro Bono Task Force during his service from 2006 to 2009. He also served on the Oregon State Bar’s Public Service Advisory Committee from 2005 to 2007.

Education

Bob is a 1998 graduate from the University of Oregon School of Law, where he was Executive Editor of the Oregon Law Review.

Representative Appellate Advocacy

• Successfully defended trial court judgment on appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, affirming summary judgment in favor of client in Section 1983 claims asserting violations of various constitutional rights (2009 unpublished opinion).
• Successfully defended trial court judgment on appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, affirming summary judgment in favor of municipality and police officer in claim for negligence and violation of Fourth Amendment rights (2009 unpublished opinion).
• Represented water association in challenge to Oregon Public Utility Commission order asserting regulatory jurisdiction over client; Court of Appeals agreed with our argument that PUC incorrectly interpreted state law and remanded case to the PUC for reconsideration. Crooked River Ranch Water Co. v. PUC, 224 Or App 485 (2008).
• Filed amicus brief on behalf of Oregon Association of Hospitals & Health Systems in Christiansen v. Providence Health System, 344 Or 445 (2008) (relating to application of the Oregon Constitution's "remedy clause" to a claim for prenatal injuries).
• Filed amicus briefs on behalf of Oregon Association of Defense Counsel in Cohens v. McGee, 219 Or App 78 (2008), and in White v. Jubitz Corp., currently pending in the Oregon Supreme Court (both relating to the question of whether written-off medical bills are recoverable as economic damages in negligence cases).
• Successfully defended trial court judgment in favor of client on appeal in professional negligence claim. 203 Or App 639, 129 P3d 281 (2006) (affirmed without opinion).
• Obtained reversal of trial court's decision to dismiss client's negligence claim based on standards for sufficiency of expert testimony. Baughman v. Pina, 200 Or App 15, 113 P3d 459 (2005).

Publications

• Medical Write-Offs - OADC amicus brief in "Cohens v. McGee" - For many years, trial courts in Oregon have wrestled with the question of whether an injured plaintiff can collect damages for amounts that a health care provider initially charges for treatment, but which are written off as required by federal Medicare or Medicaid regulations or agreements with insurance companies. At least two cases pending before the Oregon Court of Appeals potentially present this issue for a decision. In one of those cases, Cohens v. McGee, HLGR shareholder Bob Steringer recently submitted an amicus brief on behalf of the Oregon Association of Defense Counsel arguing that plaintiffs should not be permitted to recover damages for medical expenses that they never owed.
• "Punitive damages: What are the risks to Oregon businesses?" Oregon Business Magazine, Oregon Business Law Journal section (September 2004)
• “Abandoning ‘We Can’t Tell’; Does Shoup Run Afoul of the Oregon Constitution?” Oregon State Bar Bulletin, July 2003
• Comment: “The Clergy-Penitent Privilege in Oregon”, 76 Or L Rev 173 (1997).
• Introduction: Oregon Land Use Symposium – The Twenty-Fifth Anniversary of S.B. 100, 77 Or L Rev 807 (1998) (co-authored with Kurt Wanless).

Representative Transactions

• Stock Redemption – Represented corporation in redemption of stock from minority shareholder.
• Golf Course Acquisition – Represented purchaser of golf club in $10+ million transaction. Drafted and negotiated asset purchase agreement and related documentation; conducted legal due diligence; and coordinated closing of transaction.
• Shopping Center Sale – Represented seller of neighborhood shopping center in $3.8 million transaction. Negotiated sale and purchase agreement; drafted and negotiated seller financing documentation and security instruments; worked with property manager to respond to due diligence requests; worked with title company to close transaction.
• Commercial Leasing – Represented lessor of large (nearly 100,000 sq. ft.) warehouse facility in conjunction with sale of occupying business to lessee.
• Property Dedication – Represented donor of property to municipality. Negotiated terms of property dedication, including reservations of easements for water, electricity and sewer and the city’s partial release of street right-of-way on retained property; coordinated property transfer with title company.
• Restaurant Acquisition – Represented purchaser of upscale restaurant. Organized limited liability company as the acquiring entity, including the preparation of a complex operating agreement to accommodate equity participation of managing chef; drafted and negotiated all transaction documentation; prepared executive employment agreement for general manager/executive chef; worked with parties to clear title to acquired assets; negotiated and documented lease assignment and amendment; coordinated closing with escrow company.