Salem, OR

Jason Short

Jason Short is an accomplished trial lawyer with extensive experience as a Deputy District Attorney and in private practice, handling over 6,000 cases including DUIIs, misdemeanors, felonies, and Measure 11 cases. He is recognized as one of 'The National Trial Lawyers: Top 100 Criminal Defense Trial Lawyers' for 2014, 2015, and 2016, and is also a certified pistol instructor and gun rights restoration attorney.

John Gilroy

John Gilroy is a founding partner of Gilroy Napoli Short, LLC. Before starting the firm, he served as a Deputy District Attorney at the Washington County District Attorney’s Office, prosecuting a wide range of criminal cases. His experience as a prosecutor provided him with valuable insight into the criminal justice system, allowing him to effectively defend clients facing criminal charges, DUI, and personal injury claims. John has been recognized for his legal skill and dedication, earning a nomination as an Oregon Super Lawyer for the past five consecutive years. In 2014, he was also selected as a member of The National Trial Lawyers: Top 100 Trial Lawyers.

Ralph Spooner

Winning is in my DNA. I have the experience to know how to win and win big. After graduating from law school with honors, I started practicing law in Salem, Oregon in 1973. I was mentored by one of the finest trial lawyers in Oregon at the time, Bruce W. Williams. His firm was defending cases for the largest insurance companies and corporations in America. At that time the legal system did not have court settlement conferences, mediation or arbitration as processes to get cases resolved. If the attorneys for the parties did not get a case settled through negotiation, it went to trial and was decided by a jury. As a result, most cases went to trial and I quickly honed my skills as a trial attorney. In the early part of my career I tried 30-50 jury trials each year. I have tried approximately 1,000 jury trials to conclusion as of today. I can say, without bragging, that I know how to win a case in court. I have a proven track record of success. There are very few attorneys with my experience practicing law in Oregon today. When a client hires an attorney they are needing professional judgment about what to do. They don’t know the process or what is a fair settlement amount. They need to decide whether to settle their case or take it to court. That is where experience comes into play. Experience provides an attorney with the knowledge needed to provide reliable professional judgment. I have that experience. I have successfully tried cases involving millions of dollars for the largest insurance companies and corporations in America. None of these clients hired me to lose their cases. They hired me to win. They relied on my experience to win. I have a long track record of winning in the courtroom. In recent years, the insurance industry and a lot of our other corporate clients have begun to rely on data analysis, algorithms, artificial intelligence and super computers to evaluate cases. The industry is relying less and less on the professional assessment of their claims professionals and outside attorneys. This trend is troubling. While it certainly can save these companies money by reducing labor costs, it is taking the human factor out of the process. The average person who is injured or has lost a family member in an accident is reduced to a data entry. It is not right and our law firm has decided to do the right thing and to switch sides. After spending five decades defending insurance companies and their insureds, people were shocked to learn that our law firm was changing sides to exclusively represent plaintiffs. While this change may seem surprising to some, for me, my practice has always been ensuring that hard-working juries find the truth and dispense fair justice. In addition to representing insurance companies and their insureds over the years, I have also represented catastrophically injured accident victims who had claims against insurance companies that were not our clients. I know how the insurance industry works and what it takes to get them to pay a fair settlement. Other plaintiff’s attorneys have asked me to associate as co-counsel on cases they were handling. They’d bring me in to add more credibility and muscle to the team, knowing that having me on the trial team with would cause the insurance companies to offer more money, sometimes a lot more money. The insurance companies have seen what I can do for them―they sure don’t want me to now do it to them, and they’re willing to pay more to get a case settled rather than face me in court. I’ve gotten our clients some of the largest settlements and verdicts across Oregon. In the last couple of years, I have recovered millions of dollars in settlements and judgments for our injured clients. For example, recently, a skilled Oregon trial lawyer with a terribly injured client simply couldn’t get an insurance company to pay a reasonable settlement. The lawyer was out of ideas, so he asked for our firm’s help. Within a matter of weeks, we settled the case for more than ten times the amount they’d previously offered. The insurance company quickly decided that they’d better not play those games with us. And justice prevailed. In my current role, I handle a limited number of “catastrophic” cases where individuals have had their lives altered in an instant due to a serious accident. Many people come to me feeling vulnerable and intimidated by the legal process. I see myself as their advocate, fighting fiercely to secure the compensation they need to rebuild their lives. It’s an honor to share my years of experience and give back to the legal profession while advocating for clients in need. If you or a loved one needs some help, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We have a team of experienced attorneys ready to help you.

Randy M. Elmer

Randy Elmer specializes in workers’ compensation, personal injury, and Social Security Disability law. He is the owner and president of Elmer Law, PC, established in 2011. Admitted to the Oregon State Bar in 1983, he has over 40 years of experience, lobbying, authoring statutes, and representing clients. He has served as a past president of Oregon Workers’ Compensation Attorneys and on the OTLA’s Board of Governors. He was awarded OTLA’s Doug Swanson Award in 2007.

Lance D. Youd

Lance D. Youd is the Principle Attorney and Owner of Youd Law, with 30 years of experience in personal injury law. He has recovered over $10,000,000 for clients and maintains a 99.8% success rate. Lance is admitted to practice in Oregon, Utah, and the Federal Court, and is known for his client-centered approach and dedication to advocating for those in need.

Brent Gordon

Brent has earned a reputation while litigating hundreds of court cases of being an aggressive advocate who will not back down to anyone and who will fight to the end for his clients. In fact, defense attorneys and insurance company adjusters have referred their family members and friends to Brent because they know their family will be in good hands. Brent is active in the trial lawyers association where he has served several terms on the board of governors, served as an editor of the Trial Journal, filed persuasive amicus briefs on important issues before state appellate courts, and has written several award-winning articles on important personal injury topics. Brent scored a massive victory for injury victims in the landmark case of Pena v. Viking Insurance Company. In Pena, Brent persuasively convinced the Idaho Supreme Court to strike down provisions in insurance policies that eliminated coverage for people injured by an underinsured motorist.

Ryan M. Johnson is an owning partner at Johnson & Taylor law firm, in Salem, Oregon. He litigates civil cases in the areas of personal injury, probate, estate planning, guardianships, divorce, custody, and family law. He serves clients in Salem and the surrounding communities, including Albany, Dallas, Woodburn, McMinnville, Gresham, Hillsboro, and Portland. For personal injury and probate cases, he serves clients in the entire state of Oregon. Ryan was licensed to practice law in 2009 and has extensive experience advocating for clients’ rights and best interests. Ryan has an exceptional reputation among the legal community. He is appointed by the Oregon Supreme court to serve as a pro tem judge and also serves as a court appointed arbitrator and mediator. Over the course of his career, Ryan has litigated and settled thousands of personal injury, family law, probate and estate planning cases. Ryan mentors five other attorneys at Johnson & Taylor. For his exceptional legal work, he was chosen as a “Rising Star” in 2018-2019 by Super Lawyers. Most importantly Ryan and Johnson & Taylor law firm have more five-star Google reviews than any other law firm in Oregon in the combined areas of Personal Injury, Family Law, Probate and Estate Planning - a testament to his and Johnson & Taylors’ hard work and dedication to their clients. Prior to becoming a licensed attorney, Ryan earned a bachelor’s degree in business finance from Brigham Young University with two minor degrees in international business and the Spanish language. Ryan spent four years as an entrepreneur including conducting business in Damascus, Syria. Ryan is fluent in Spanish and speaks basic Arabic. Following his business ventures, he went to law school for one year at the University of Connecticut and finished law school by graduating from the University of Oregon School of Law. During law school Ryan clerked for a federal judge and a privately owned insurance defense company. He received numerous awards for his educational accomplishments during undergraduate and law school and participated on his law school’s international moot court team. In addition to his practice, Ryan has authored articles that have appeared in the Connecticut Law Journal and the Marion County Bar Association. He has served on the Marion County Bar Association leadership team and currently serves on Marion County arbitration oversight committee. He has lectured on business and law practice topics for Chemeketa Community College and Willamette University College of Law. Ryan is a member of the Marion County Bar Association and the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association. He is active in the family law and litigation sections of the Oregon State Bar. Outside of his profession, Ryan has an amazing wife and three wonderful children. Ryan enjoys playing and recording music, playing and watching sports and relaxing with his family.