Oregon's Workplace Fairness Act gives employees five years to file a sexual harassment claim — longer than federal law allows.
Oregon's Workplace Fairness Act (SB 726, effective 2020) extended the statute of limitations for sexual harassment claims to five years — well beyond the federal one-year EEOC filing deadline — and banned most non-disclosure agreements in harassment cases. That changed the bargaining math for Portland employees, and the right attorney knows how to use it. The firms below handle hostile work environment, quid pro quo harassment, retaliation, and the BOLI/EEOC dual-filing strategy that Oregon employment lawyers use.
These ten Portland sexual harassment firms were selected based on Oregon State Bar Labor & Employment Section membership, Best Lawyers and Super Lawyers recognition, Avvo and Justia client ratings, and consistent surfacing in Oregon employment law publications. All firms confirmed by at least two independent directories.
How we picked these 10: We do not accept payment for placement, and we do not write sponsored reviews. More on our methodology → | How to compare firms →
Practice focus: Sexual harassment, hostile work environment, discrimination
Portland employment firm with over 40 years combined attorney experience. Founders Alan Baker and Heather Liss have litigated harassment and discrimination cases statewide.
Strong fit when you want a contingency-fee structure — Baker & Liss takes most harassment cases on contingency, so you pay no fees unless they recover.
Practice focus: Workplace discrimination, harassment, retaliation
Portland firm focused on plaintiff-side employment law. Founder Paul Bullman has served as lead trial counsel in workplace cases across Multnomah, Washington, Clackamas, and surrounding counties.
Strong fit when the case is likely to require an EEOC right-to-sue letter and federal court litigation rather than just BOLI conciliation.
Practice focus: Employment, civil rights, sexual harassment, retaliation
Portland employment and civil rights firm with attorneys having nearly 60 years combined experience. Practice spans sexual harassment, wrongful termination, discrimination, and retaliation.
Strong fit when the case involves multiple overlapping claims — for example, harassment combined with disability discrimination or whistleblower retaliation.
Practice focus: Employee-side sexual harassment, discrimination, retaliation
Portland firm of attorney Eric Wilson, who has over twenty years of experience handling labor and employment matters statewide — Portland, Beaverton, Gresham, Hood River, Salem, Eugene, and Pendleton.
Strong fit for employees in Oregon's smaller markets who want a Portland-licensed attorney who knows the local BOLI investigators.
Practice focus: Sexual harassment, sexual assault at work, retaliation, whistleblowing
Portland employee-rights firm (Workplace Law PDX) handling sexual harassment, sexual assault in the workplace, separation agreements, noncompetes, whistleblowing, and retaliation cases.
Strong fit when the harassment involves alleged sexual assault or criminal conduct — the firm coordinates the civil case with reporting decisions thoughtfully.
Practice focus: Discrimination, retaliation, wrongful termination, sexual harassment, disability discrimination
Long-running Portland employee-side firm. Since 1981, Busse & Hunt has handled discrimination, retaliation, wrongful termination, sexual harassment, and disability discrimination cases throughout Oregon.
Strong fit for higher-stakes harassment claims where you want a firm with a long trial-court track record rather than a settlement-first orientation.
Practice focus: Labor and employment, sexual harassment, union rights
One of Portland's longest-standing labor and employment firms. Bennett Hartman represents employees and unions across the public and private sector.
Strong fit when you are a public-sector employee or covered by a collective bargaining agreement — the firm's union-side experience is unusual for a plaintiff-side harassment practice.
Practice focus: Employee-side sexual harassment, discrimination, retaliation
Portland plaintiff-side employment firm. Practice focuses on sexual harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and wrongful termination across Oregon.
Strong fit when you want a smaller team and direct attorney communication. Useful for confidential intake when the employer is a large Portland employer.
Practice focus: Sexual harassment, wrongful termination, wage claims
National employee-side employment firm with a Portland office. HKM handles sexual harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and wage claims with a no-fee-unless-we-win structure.
Strong fit when you want a multi-state firm — useful when the employer is national and the harassment occurred across more than one office.
Practice focus: Labor and employment, public-sector harassment, union representation
Portland labor and employment firm. Tedesco represents workers in education, healthcare, construction & trades, transportation, and public safety.
Strong fit when you are a teacher, nurse, firefighter, or public-sector employee — the firm knows the unique grievance and arbitration paths that overlay civil harassment claims.
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Fit your situation, not just the practice area. A sexual harassment firm that does mostly high-dollar cases is a different fit from one that does mostly working-family matters. Call the firm and ask: "What does a typical client look like for you? What does a typical case look like?" If the answer is your situation, you are in the right place.
Ask who actually handles the case. Many firms market on the senior partner and route the day-to-day work to a junior associate. That is not automatically bad — junior associates can be excellent — but you should know who you are working with. Ask: "Who will I be talking to day-to-day? How often does the senior partner sit in?"
Compare quotes side by side. Most Portland firms on this list offer a free or low-cost initial consultation. Use two of them. Compare fee structure, retainer, and the answers to the same set of questions across firms.
Most Portland sexual harassment firms work on contingency or hybrid contingency — typically 33–40% of any recovery, with the firm advancing case costs. Hourly billing, when used, ranges $325–$525 for senior partners. Initial consultations are typically free at plaintiff-side firms. Under both Oregon law and Title VII, prevailing plaintiffs can recover attorneys' fees separately from damages, which often shifts the fee burden to the defendant.
A Portland harassment matter that settles pre-litigation can resolve in 4–9 months. A BOLI complaint resolves in 6–18 months. EEOC charges typically run 10–20 months. A federal court harassment lawsuit that goes to trial averages 18–30 months from filing. Many cases settle during the discovery phase, 9–14 months in.
BOLI handles Oregon state harassment complaints out of its Portland office. EEOC charges are filed at the Seattle Field Office. Federal lawsuits are filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon (Portland Division). State court harassment claims are heard in Multnomah, Washington, or Clackamas County Circuit Court.
Oregon sexual harassment has distinct features that differ from neighboring states.
Oregon's Workplace Fairness Act extended the deadline. SB 726 (effective 2020) gives Oregon employees five years from the date of the harassment to file a civil claim. Federal Title VII still requires you to file with the EEOC within 300 days, so a Portland lawyer typically dual-files to preserve every option.
NDA bans are real and enforceable. Under the Workplace Fairness Act, Oregon employers cannot require non-disclosure or non-disparagement agreements that prevent employees from disclosing harassment, discrimination, or assault. Any such clause signed after October 2020 is generally unenforceable.
BOLI is the state agency. The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) is the state-level equivalent of the EEOC. BOLI investigates harassment complaints and can refer them for civil action. Filing with BOLI tolls the statute of limitations for state claims.
Damages can stack. Successful Portland harassment plaintiffs can recover back pay, front pay, emotional distress damages, punitive damages (when reckless or intentional conduct is shown), and attorneys' fees. Damages caps under Title VII apply for federal claims, but Oregon's state harassment statute has no cap.
The first hundred Google results for "sexual harassment lawyer Portland" include thousands of firms. Most are competent. A handful are problems. The patterns to walk away from:
Guaranteed outcomes. No ethical attorney can guarantee a result. If a firm promises a specific recovery or dismissal, leave.
The vanishing partner. You meet a senior name at intake, then never speak to them again. Ask in writing who handles your case from day to day.
Pressure to sign immediately. Reputable firms give you the retainer in writing, time to read it, and the option to take it home. High-pressure intake is almost always a volume mill.
No verifiable track record. The firm should be able to point to published verdicts, settlements, peer rankings, or bar association recognition. "We have helped thousands of clients" is marketing. Specific cases, numbers, and third-party rankings are evidence.
Vague fee terms. Every legitimate Portland lawyer will give you a written engagement letter with the fee structure, what is covered, what triggers extra charges, and what happens if you fire them. If the firm cannot put that in writing, walk away.
We will connect you with vetted sexual harassment attorneys in Portland. No fee to use this service.
The free consultation is short — usually 30 to 45 minutes. The lawyer cannot give you a serious case assessment without the documents. Bring the file. Most consultations turn into useful guidance only after the attorney has seen the paper trail.
The paper trail. Every email, text, and letter that touches the matter. Print or PDF the threads in chronological order. If you have a contract or written agreement, bring the signed version and any drafts that show what was negotiated. For court matters, bring every filed document and any orders that have issued.
A written timeline. One page. Bullet points. Date on the left, what happened on the right. Lawyers think in chronology — a timeline is the single most useful artifact you can prepare.
Names and contact information. Everyone involved on the other side, anyone who witnessed the events, your prior attorneys (if any), the relevant insurance carriers or institutions. A lawyer needs to run a conflict check before taking the case; a short list saves time.
Your goals, in writing. What does a good outcome look like? What does an acceptable outcome look like? What is non-negotiable? A lawyer who knows your goals can tell you whether the case is worth the cost.
Most Portland sexual harassment firms on this list offer a free or low-cost initial consultation. Use it. Bring a list of questions, write down the answers, and compare across two firms before you sign.
Under Oregon's Workplace Fairness Act, you have five years from the date of the harassment to file a civil lawsuit under state law. Federal EEOC charges must be filed within 300 days. Most Portland attorneys recommend dual-filing to preserve every claim.
No. Since October 2020, Oregon law prohibits employers from requiring NDAs or non-disparagement agreements that would prevent an employee from disclosing harassment, discrimination, or sexual assault. Voluntary NDAs in settlement, requested by the employee, are still allowed.
Conduct based on a protected characteristic (sex, gender identity, race, religion, etc.) that is severe or pervasive enough to alter the conditions of employment. A single severe incident (assault, explicit quid pro quo) can qualify; a pattern of less severe conduct can also qualify if frequent enough.
Federal Title VII requires you to file an EEOC charge first and obtain a right-to-sue letter. Oregon state-law harassment claims under ORS 659A can be filed directly in court without a BOLI charge, though many attorneys file with BOLI anyway for investigation leverage.
Depends on severity, duration, lost wages, and whether punitive damages are recoverable. Single-plaintiff Oregon harassment settlements typically range $25,000–$500,000. Larger awards happen when the conduct is severe, the employer was on notice, and the lost-earnings claim is substantial.
You can. Oregon law forbids retaliation for filing a harassment complaint, and a retaliation claim is often easier to prove than the underlying harassment. A Portland employment lawyer can advise on whether to file internally, with BOLI, or both.
Under Oregon ORS 659A.030, individual supervisors and coworkers can be personally liable for harassment in addition to the employer. Federal Title VII generally does not allow individual liability. Most lawsuits name both the company and the individual.
Quid pro quo means a supervisor conditions a job benefit (promotion, raise, continued employment) on submission to sexual conduct. Hostile work environment is harassment that is severe or pervasive enough to alter working conditions. Both are illegal under Oregon and federal law.
One last thing. Choosing a lawyer is personal. Read the reviews. Call two or three firms before you sign. Ask each one: How many cases like mine have you taken to verdict in the last three years? The answer tells you what you need to know. — The LawFirmSquare team