ATTORNEYS

There are five lawyers in our firm. To learn more about the attorneys use the links below. Additional contact information, including telephone numbers, fax numbers, addresses, staff names and e-mail addresses can be found on the "contact us" page.

Joseph T. Hagen was educated at the University of Innsbruck, Mt. Angel College (B.A., 1967), Georgetown University Law Center (J.D., 1971), and New York University (LL.M. in Taxation, 1972), and has been engaged in private practice of law in Portland, Oregon, for over 25 years.

Mr. Hagen is a member of the Oregon, California, and Washington State Bars, the District of Columbia Bar, the U.S. Supreme Court Bar, and the United States Tax Court Bar.

Mr. Hagen has written and lectured extensively in the field of tax law, has been Adjunct Professor of Tax Law at the Northwestern School of Law at Lewis and Clark College, and has served as an officer of the Taxation Section of the Oregon State Bar. He is a co-founder and member of the Board of Directors of the Portland Tax Forum and was 1988-89 Chairman of the Board.

Mr. Hagen maintains a general business, corporate, and estate planning practice with special emphasis in financing, probate and trust administration matters, and family limited liability companies.

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Kevin O’Connell is a graduate of Fordham University (B.A.–1963, LLB-1966) and New York University (LL.M. in Taxation-1970). Mr. O’Connell served as a law clerk for the Oregon Supreme Court in 1966 and 1967, and has been engaged in private practice of law in Portland, Oregon, for over 30 years. Mr. O’Connell has been a name partner in a number of major law firms in Portland, Oregon, and most recently the senior partner at O’Connell Hval & Fraser LLP.

Mr. O’Connell is licensed to practice law in Oregon and is a member of the American, Oregon and Multnomah County Bar Associations. Mr. O’Connell has represented clients in civil and criminal matters in state and federal court. Mr. O’Connell has been admitted to practice before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, the United States Tax Court and the United States Court of Federal Claims.

Mr. O’Connell possesses expertise in a number of areas of law, including: federal, state and local taxation, individual and business tax planning, estate planning, entity formation and general corporate counseling, business and real estate transactions, employee benefits and employment law, probate and trust matters, representation of taxpayers in tax audits, appeals and tax litigation, and civil litigation in state and federal courts.

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Steven B. Hval is a graduate of the University of Washington where he earned a business degree in the accounting concentration in 1988. Mr. Hval graduated from the University of Oregon School of Law in 1992 and acquired an LL.M at the University of Miami, Florida, in 1993.

Mr. Hval has been licensed to practice law in Oregon since 1993 and is a member of the American, Oregon and Multnomah County Bar Associations. Mr. Hval is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, the United States Tax Court and the United States Court of Federal Claims.

Mr. Hval’s practice includes individual and business tax planning, estate planning, entity formation and general corporate counseling, employee benefits and employment law, probate and trust matters, representation of taxpayers in tax audits, appeals and tax litigation, and civil litigation.

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Thomas J. Fraser has over 15 years experience in providing legal services to individuals and businesses, specializing in the formation of business entities, acquisitions and sales of companies, estate planning and probate, and tax planning and compliance matters. Mr. Fraser is a member of the Oregon and Washington State Bars. His background encompasses a wide range of complex transactional and estate planning projects involving the participation of the client’s other financial and legal advisors, including accountants, financial planners, insurance agents and general counsel. Mr. Fraser frequently is brought into a transaction as special tax counsel to assist with reorganizations, acquisitions and mergers by rendering the tax opinion and documenting the transaction. He also assists the owners of businesses with their estate and gift tax planning by creating valuation discounts using family limited partnerships and limited liability companies, establishing trusts for spouses and children, and through charitable gifting programs using charitable remainder trusts and other gifting vehicles.

Mr. Fraser has taught a continuing legal education program on the formation and operation of family limited partnerships in Oregon. He attended the University of Oregon School of Law in Eugene, Oregon (J.D.-1985) and the National Law Center at George Washington University, Washington D.C. (LL. M. in Taxation-1987). Mr. Fraser is a member of the American Bar Association (member taxation and real property, probate and estate planning sections); the Oregon State Bar Association – 1985 (member taxation, business law and estate planning and administration sections); the Multnomah County Bar Association, and the Washington State Bar Association –2000 (member real property, probate and estate planning sections).

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John Ramig is a graduate of Harvard College, where he was a Harvard Scholar and received his A.B., magna cum laude, in 1980. He earned his J.D. from the University of Virginia in 1984, where he served on the editorial board of the Virginia Journal of Law and Politics. He has engaged in the private practice of law in Washington, DC and Portland, Oregon for nearly 20 years.

Prior to practicing law, Mr. Ramig served on the Washington, DC staff of U.S. Senator Mark O. Hatfield and on the White House staff in the Carter Administration’s Office of Public Liaison. He also has served on the staff of Donald Anderson, a member of the British Parliament.

Mr. Ramig is licensed to practice law in Oregon. He possesses expertise in government law (both legislative lobbying and administrative proceedings) at the federal, state and local government levels. In addition, he maintains a general business and corporate practice, including entity formation, acquisition or sale of companies and corporate financings. Mr. Ramig also has expertise in international business transactions, including distribution agreements and manufacturing agreements with Asian suppliers.

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Paul Migchelbrink is a 1988 graduate of the University of Idaho and a 1993 cum laude graduate of Willamette University College of Law. Mr. Migchelbrink has been licensed to practice law in Oregon since 1993 and is a member of the American, Oregon State, and Multnomah County Bar Associations. He is active in the Business and Corporate Counsel Sections of the Oregon State Bar and currently serves as chair of the Corporate Finance and M & A Committee of the Business Section.

Mr. Migchelbrink’s practice emphasizes business and corporate matters, intellectual property, commercial contracts and real estate. He regularly advises clients on a wide variety of legal matters including initial formation, debt and equity financing, mergers and acquisitions, technology, software and other licensing agreements, commercial sales agreements, distribution and supply agreements, secured financing arrangements, creditor’s rights issues, and various intellectual property matters including trademark and trade secret protection. He also has expertise in handling real estate transactions including property acquisitions and sales, development projects and commercial leases.

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