Hear from Willamette Law alumni who recently joined Miller Nash

With the closure of Bullard Law in the fall of 2023 after 45 years in business, a number of its attorneys and staff, including several Willamette Law alumni, chose to join Miller Nash. Willamette alumni making the move cited similarities between Bullard Law and Miller Nash, including its family-like atmosphere and client-centered approach.

Miller Nash is a 150-year-old law firm with locations in Anchorage, Boise, Long Beach (California), Portland, Seattle and Vancouver (Washington).

More than 150 attorneys and legal professionals work in industries ranging from admiralty and maritime law, to financial services, to sports, media and entertainment law, to tribal law, among others.

Meet a few of our alumni who recently joined the Miller Nash team.

Heather Van Meter JD’98, Partner, Vancouver Office

Heather Van Meter JD’98 practices primarily in employment law and general litigation, representing private companies, public entities and nonprofit organizations throughout Oregon and Washington. She joined Miller Nash because of its respectable reputation and thoughtfulness for its clients and employees.

The bonus was how kind and friendly all the Miller Nash people are to work with,” she says. “Many Bullard Law staff joined Miller Nash, as well, and they are thriving here. Seeing how caring Miller Nash is toward its associates and staff, as well as clients, is a true blessing.

Van Meter says the organization has been supportive of her growing practice with nonprofits, as well as public and rural employers in Oregon and Washington.

Larger firms do not typically focus efforts in these areas, but Miller Nash has welcomed it,” she explains, “recognizing the value we can provide to the nonprofit, public and rural business sectors in the Northwest.

Liani J. Reeves BA’98, JD’01, Partner, Portland Office

Liani J. Reeves BA’98, JD’01 practices employment law, with a focus on working with public sector clients and conducting workplace investigations. She was president and partner at Bullard Law prior to its closure and also served a term as president of the Oregon State Bar in 2020.

She says the group from Bullard saw Miller Nash as a great fit for their labor and employment practice and clients. She is particularly grateful for the opportunity the firm provided in keeping her previous team together as a group, including eight lawyers and five staff members.

I had the occasion to work with many of the attorneys on the Miller Nash labor and employment team over the years in various capacities, and I have always found them to be a great group of lawyers and staff,” Reeves says. “We were also excited that coming to a full-service firm would allow us to offer our clients a complete suite of services that we could not previously provide as a boutique labor and employment firm.

Jess Osborne JD’12, Partner, Portland Office

Jess Osborne JD’12 practices management-side traditional labor and employment law, representing public, private and nonprofit employers in a variety of employment and labor relations matters.

She says she looks forward to enjoying the collegiality and culture of Miller Nash, which she says was the ideal firm to join, with an excellent education, employment and labor group that represents clients throughout the region.

As a labor practice, specifically, we doubled the size of the Miller Nash team and have a deep bench of public and private sector management-side labor practitioners, which is a unique and exciting practice area, she says.

She counts Reeves as a mentor, leader, colleague and friend, who has had a positive impact on her career and the transition to Miller Nash.

I am incredibly fortunate to work alongside great colleagues, including my fantastic fellow Bearcats,” Osborne says. “Throughout my career, a constant has been excellent mentorship and development opportunities from attorneys and staff, including all of my colleagues who transitioned with me from Bullard to Miller Nash.

Richard Alli, Jr. JD’80 Partner, Portland Office

Ric Alli JD’80 is a sought-after counsel across the U.S. for his expertise in private and public sector collective bargaining and employment law planning and strategy. He spent 44 years with Bullard Law before moving to Miller Nash to expand his practice to a greater variety of clients.

I was admitted to a large number of law schools across the country but chose Willamette University College of Law because it had renowned professors who were involved with traditional labor law subjects, which was not available at other law schools. Willamette was unique in that way," Alli says. “Now, I’ve been practicing for 45 years. I appreciate the opportunity to continue to practice my specialty at a large, well-respected firm and the exposure it brings to expand my practice to large regional clients.

Paige Alli JD’21, Associate, Portland Office

Paige Alli JD’21 focuses her practice on labor relations matters, including complex arbitrations, administrative proceedings and litigation.

I began practicing law in 2022 while COVID was still affecting workplaces, so I was looking for an opportunity to practice at a larger firm and learn the trade,” Alli shares. “I wanted to join Miller Nash to continue to develop my growth as a new lawyer.

While at Willamette Law, she was a founding officer of student group, the Labor and Employment Law Association. She is enjoying learning how labor and employment law intersects with different industries and areas of the law that she would not have thought of otherwise.

Miller Nash has an active Pro Bono Committee which has given me the opportunity to work on a variety of pro bono matters across different areas of law,” Alli says. “Being able to collaborate with colleagues across practice areas has been an invaluable experience to gain exposure to a wide spectrum of legal issues.