Dennis Black (Firm Founders)

Firm Founder and Honored Attorney Emeritus

Dennis H. Black

Born New York, NY, September 19, 1945

Admitted to bar 1970 Connecticut; 1972 California; 1976 Oregon

Education:
Institue D’etudes Politiques, Paris, France (C.E.P., 1966) Fordham University (B.A. summa cum laude, 1967) Yale Law School (L.L.B.,1970) Phi Beta Kappa.

Member:
Oregon State Bar, State Bar of California; The Association of Trial Lawyers of America, Oregon Trial Lawyers Association

Practice Areas:
Personal Injury

BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENT

Name: Dennis H. Black

Office: 221 Stewart Ave., # 209
Medford, OR 97501
Telephone: 541-772-9850
E-mail: [email protected]

Education:
B.A. Fordham College 1967
Certificat D= Etudes Politiques
L=Institut D= Estudes Polutuques de Paris 1966
L.L.B. Yale Law School 1970

College:
National Merit Scholarship Finalist
Summa Cum Laude
Phi Beta Kappa (Junior Year)
Fordham Club (Extracurricular Honor Society)

Law School: Director, Yale Legal Services Organization
Reginald Heber Smith Fellowship

State and federal courts to which I am admitted and dates of admission.

California Bar 1972 by exam
Oregon Bar 1976 by exam
Federal Districts Courts for the District of Oregon (10/14/76)
Northern District of California (12/19/73
Eastern District of California (7/1/88)
United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit (10/29/87)

Experience after law school, including dates, positions and the nature of practice in each position.

Yale VISTA Summer Associates Project May 1969 – Sept. 1969

Yale Legal Services Organization May 1969 – May 1970

General Counsel/Planning Coordinator
New Haven City Demonstration Agency
Model Cities Program Nov. 1970 – Oct. 1971

Associate with Stern, Stotter & O=Brien Sept. 1972 – Mar. 1974
San Francisco, California

Associate with Werchick & Werchick Mar. 1974 – May 1976
San Francisco, California

Associate with Ford & Cowling 1976 -1979
Medford, Oregon

Private Practice 1979 – Present
Medford, Oregon

My practice is exclusively plaintiff=s personal injury litigation

Federal Court (5%)
State Circuit (Oregon) and
Superior (California) Courts (95%)
Administrative bodies (0%)

Civil (100%)
Jury (85%)
Nonjury (15%)

Former Pro Tem Municipal Court Judge, Medford, Ashland & Jacksonville

Pro Tem Circuit Court, Jackson County 1998-2010

Memberships:

American College of Trial Lawyers

Note: Dennis has retired from the practice of law but remains a resource for his former partners with his humor, wisdom and visionary approach to the practice of law. Dennis was instrumental in our firm being one of the first firms in Oregon to be completely paperless. His contributions to the PLF as its director were invaluable. Dennis is a blend of true urban sophistication and small town charm. The firm misses seeing him on a regular basis.

Prior Bio

Dennis is one of the original founding partners of the firm. Born in New York and educated in the East, he graduated summa cum laude from Fordham College where he was selected to Phi Beta Kappa in his junior year before obtaining his law degree from Yale Law School in 1970. Dennis moved to Oregon in the 70’s to launch his private practice. Over the next 35 years he has developed an outstanding reputation standing up for the rights of individuals. He is licensed to practice law in California and Oregon and has been an effective advocate for hundreds of people living in Oregon and Northern California.

Dennis is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, one of the premier legal associations in America. Fellowship in the College is extended by invitation and only after careful investigation to those experienced trial lawyers who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards of ethical conduct, professionalism, civility and collegiality. Lawyers must have a minimum of fifteen years trial experience before they can be considered for Fellowship. Membership in the College cannot exceed one percent of the total lawyer population of any state or province. Since 2009 Superlawyer Magazine has named Dennis “Superlawyer” as chosen by attorney peers and independent research. Dennis has the highest possible Peer Review Rating in legal ability and ethical standards awarded by Martindale-Hubbell , publisher of the oldest legal directory in the country. In 2010 Dennis was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Children’s Advocacy Center, Medford, OR, the regional child abuse prevention agency for Southern Oregon.

Memberships: Oregon State Bar, State Bar of California, American College of Trial Lawyers. All Oregon and California State Courts, Federal Court for the District of Oregon, and Northern and Eastern Districts of California. United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.

Practice Areas

Education

Fordham College – 1965-1969

Dennis graduated summa cum laude from Fordham College where he was selected to Phi Beta Kappa in his junior year.

Yale Law School – 1970

Dennis graduated summa cum laude from Fordham College where he was selected to Phi Beta Kappa in his junior year before obtaining his law degree from Yale Law School in 1970.

Awards

Dennis Black, of Black Chapman Petersen & Stevens, has been selected to the 2018 list as a member of the Nation’s Top One Percent by the National Association of Distinguished Counsel. Read the full press release here.