Vial Fotheringham LLP is proud to announce that one of our founding partners, Rich Vial, was recently elected to the Oregon Legislature by a considerable margin.

Rich Vial, who founded our firm with his wife Paula in the mid-80s, announced in December of 2015 that he was taking a much smaller role with the firm.  With the daily operations of the firm confidently in the hands of our managing partner, Tom Johnson, and a talented staff of attorneys working hard to service his clients, Rich Vial decided to pursue other opportunities to serve.

“I’ve always had a desire to serve at the Legislature, and I’ve been actively working in local politics for more than 30 years”, says Rich.

“When my predecessor, Representative John Davis, decided not to seek reelection, my wife and I discussed this at great length and decided the time was right for me to seek public office.

I’m incredibly honored for this opportunity and take this great responsibility very seriously.  While I’ve spent the last 30 years working at the legislature on behalf of my legal clients, I now have the opportunity to work on behalf of every Oregonian.”

As anyone who’s ever worked with him knows, when Rich sets his mind to accomplishing something, he works tirelessly to achieve it.  This election was no different.  He walked nearly 15,000 doors himself, including homes in the rural area of his district that had never been visited by any other politician.

Rich committed to run a 100% positive campaign and kept that pledge throughout.  He and his volunteers worked incredibly hard to share his vision for a more transparent and effective state government and economic opportunities for every Oregonian.  Most importantly, they steadfastly avoided any negative attacks on his opponents in both the Primary and General elections.

When the dust had settled, Rich won this election by nearly 10 points in a district where his opponent had a significant registration advantage.

Rich Vial’s leadership, experience and knowledge about land-use and association law will be a tremendous asset to the next Legislative Assembly.  As one of the authors of Oregon’s condominium law, and a driving force in establishing many of the statutes we depend on to manage our associations, Rich is prepared to start working on day one to improve our economy and build stronger communities.

“We’re very proud of Rich Vial, and I know how hard he worked to earn every vote he received”, says Tom Johnson.

“Rich has dedicated himself to this new endeavor with the same level of commitment he’s always provided our clients and fellow attorneys.  We’re excited to see Rich put his considerable intellect and energy to work solving some of the greatest challenges facing the State of Oregon.”

Rich Vial will remain a practicing attorney at Vial Fotheringham LLP as time allows and will continue to assist the next generation of attorneys as they continue to provide exceptional representation to our clients.

“I’m very grateful for all of the support I received from everyone at Vial Fotheringham over the course of my campaign. Many of our staff supported me financially or gave of their time to help me over the finish line.  I’m proud of the exceptional people I’ve had an opportunity to work with at this firm.”

Rich Vial may still be reached at:

[email protected]