This webinar covers the fundamentals of how to read a case, particularly for litigating attorneys. We’ll go through the anatomy of a typical appellate opinion, cover the various standards of review, and talk about specifically what to look for when either using or distinguishing a case in motions practice
Alicia
LeDuc Montgomery
Partner
Phone
206.448.1777
About Alicia LeDuc Montgomery
I grew up in a close-knit rural community in southwest Washington. My father managed environmental restoration at a coal mine. My mother worked in frozen food packaging plants before starting her own business and later becoming a human resources leader. My extended family are farmers, ranchers, loggers, and small business owners. They teach me the importance of hard work, integrity, resourcefulness, and looking out for our neighbors. Our church and my Catholic education reinforced a belief that has stayed with me: every person has inherent dignity, no matter their circumstance.
As I grew older, that belief developed into an interest in human rights, social movements, and the ways ordinary people confront injustice. I traveled to Guatemala as a human rights witness. There I met survivors, advocates, and communities rebuilding after decades of violent armed conflict and military and corporate attacks on Indigenous communities to steal land and subvert culture. People died, villages were burned, and the government and corporations bulldozed the remains into mass graves. I went to the village, touched the charred beams, heard mothers weep, and stood with an old man in a field on the spot where his son lay buried in a pit with many others. I never saw the world the same again.
Those experiences deepened my understanding of what happens when people are denied protection by the institutions entrusted to serve them. They also inspired my interest in how survivors, lawyers, and advocates can work together to demand accountability and transform individual cases into broader institutional reform.
That experience clarified what I want from my own life. I want to use my education, experience, and whatever influence I possess to help you reclaim the dignity, safety, and power over your own life that they took from you.
I believe effective advocacy requires more than technical skill or command of the law. It requires curiosity, imagination, emotional courage, and a willingness to enter another person’s experience without judgment.
I am a lawyer because I want to be that person for you.
You are more than your worst experiences. To me, you are not just a case, injury, or legal claim. We are human beings with histories, relationships, hopes, fears, and lives that deserve to be understood in their fullness. I want to know who you were before you were hurt, what you lost, and what you need to move forward.
I cannot undo what happened, but I can work to understand the full measure of what you have endured, help others recognize your experience, and do everything in my power to hold the people or institutions responsible for your injuries accountable.
I cannot promise you that I will succeed, but I can promise you that I will not be intimidated.
Outside
the Office
Outside the office, I steward a homestead near Mt. St. Helens, restoring native plants to a creek watershed, growing produce, and raising organic turkeys alongside 6 giant livestock guardian dogs and a few cats. I am a 6th generation resident of the Pacific Northwest and enjoy traveling and experiencing the landscapes and cultures of this region I love and call home.
Awards & Recognitions
- Rising Star Award, American Constitution Society
- Pro Bono Honor Roll, Oregon State Bar
- Impact Case of the Year, Benchmark Litigation (Davis Wright Tremaine Team)
- Public Interest Law Fellowship, Willamette University
- Merit Award, Washington State Department of Commerce
- Finalist, Be The Spirit Award, St. Martin’s University
- The Olympian Award for Excellence in Community Service, presented by Governor Gary Locke
Leadership & Affiliations
- Past Co-Chair, Civil Rights Section, Oregon Trial Lawyers Association
- Past Executive Committee, Civil Rights Section, Oregon State Bar
- Leadership Academy, Oregon Trial Lawyers Association
- Graduate, Trial Lawyers College
- Lawyers Committee, ACLU of Oregon
- Legal Redress Committee, NAACP of Vancouver
- Member, National Police Accountability Project
- Member, AAJ
- Member, OTLA
- Member, WSAJ
- Commissioner, Clark County Planning Commission
Publications & Presentations
- Speaker, Bias Crime Victim Advocacy, National Crime Victim Law Institute
- Speaker, Civil Rights Litigation, Oregon Trial Lawyers Association Convention
- Speaker, Prisoner Civil Rights Panel, Willamette University College of Law
- Managing Impact Litigation for Environmental Justice: A Model for Advancing Ecocide Law Through Strategic Case Selection, Procedural Innovation, and Tech-Enabled Movement Lawyering (Baylor University College of Law, 2025)
- Strategic Alliances as an Impact Litigation Model: Lessons from the Sepur Zarco Human Rights Case in Guatemala, 25 Willamette Journal of International Law & Dispute Resolution 150 (2018)
Media & Press
Lead Counsel
Police Misconduct
- Hill v. Lane County Sheriff’s Mounted Posse, 6:25-CV-01290-MC – Bias Crime, Excessive Force
- Johnston-Corson v. City of Gold Beach, 1:25-cv-01258-CL – Police Shooting – Excessive Force, Monell
- https://kobi5.com/news/top-stories/gold-beach-officer-sued-for-excessive-force-in-2024-shooting-279797/3.
- Malaer v. City of Medford, 1:20-cv-00049-CL (Bifurcated) – Police Misconduct – ADA Violations
- McKnight v. City of Ashland, 1:26-cv-00008-CL – First Amendment Retaliation, Monell
- Malaer v. Curry County, 1:24-cv-01137-CL – Police Misconduct – Ex Post Facto Violation
- Stabbin Wagon et al v. City of Medford, 1:25-cv-01632-MTK – Police Misconduct – First Amendment Retaliation, Monell, Conspiracy
- Butler v. Douglas County, 6:25-cv-01215-MC – Bias Crime, Excessive Force, Failure to Provide
Medial Care
Jail Abuse
- Malaer v. Jackson County, 1:20-cv-00049-MC (Bifurcated) – Jail Abuse – Excessive Force, ADA Violations, Monell
- Iverson v. Curry County – Jail Wrongful Death (Settled Pre-Filing)
- Payne v. Clark County, 3:25−cv−05045−TMC – Excessive Force
- Grant v. Multnomah County, 3:24-cv-00772-SB – Excessive Force (Pro Bono Trial Counsel)
Prison Abuse
- Bender v. ODOC et al, 3:24-cv-00535-HZ – Failure to Protect, Denial of Medical Care
- Forbess v. ODOC et al, 2:22-cv-00506-YY – ADA Violations, Denial of Medical Care
- Singh v. ODOC et al, 6:22-cv-00596 – Corrections Officer Sex Abuse
- https://www.opb.org/article/2022/05/28/former-oregon-corrections-officer-sued-sexual-abuse-at-prison/
- Moreno v. ODOC et al, 6:22-cv-00611– Corrections Officer Sex Abuse
- Ros v. ODOC et al, 6:21-cv-00739 – Corrections Officer Sex Abuse
- Avalos-Corona v. ODOC et al, 6:21-cv-00939 – Corrections Officer Sex Abuse
- Watkins v. ODOC et al, 3:24-CV-01922-AR – Prison Doctor Sex Abuse
- Anderson v. ODOC et al, 3:25-cv-02028-IM – Prison Doctor Sex Abuse
- Schwab v. ODOC et al, 3:26-cv-00074-SB – Prison Doctor Sex Abuse
- Garman v. ODOC et al, 3:25-cv-00652-AN – Prison Doctor Sex Abuse
- Holt v. ODOC et al, 3:25-CV-2356-AP– Prison Doctor Sex Abuse
Second Chair or Supporting Counsel
- Dickinson v. Trump, 3:25-cv-02170-SB – ICE Detention Center Injunction – Class Action (ACLU Supporting Counsel)
- Sancho v. City of Ashland, 21-cv-14988 – False Arrest (ACLU Supporting Counsel)
- Rogue Valley Pepper Shakers v. City of Medford, 24-cv-39962 – Police Misconduct – Unlawful Spying on Activists
- May v. City of Eugene, 25-cv-56713 – Public Records – Flock Surveillance Camera Locations
- Smith v. Susewind, 3:26-cv-05333-SKV – State Agency Misconduct – First Amendment Retaliation
- Lyon v. City of Albany – Police Shooting – Excessive Force, Monell (Filing Imminent)
- Vogel v. Evergreen State College – Public Records
- Urbano v. ODOC – Excessive Force (Settled Pre-Filing)
Community & Teaching
- Co-Host, Civil Rights Literary Salon featuring Prof. Joanna Schwartz
- Mentor, Alliance for International Women’s Rights
- Supervisor, SPPE Program, Oregon State Bar
- Guest Lecturer, Northwest Indian College, Women and the Work of Liberation
- Guest Lecturer, Alliance to Break the Silence and Impunity, Robert A Harvie Lecture Series, Saint Martin’s University
- Street Law Course Instructor, Chemeketa Community College
- Sustainability Speaker Series Coordinator, Sustainability in Prisons Project
- Teaching Assistant, St. Martin’s University
- Conversation Partner Program Coordinator, St. Martin’s University
Education
- Baylor University School of Law — Executive LL.M. in Litigation Management (2025)
- Willamette University College of Law — Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, Presidential Scholar (2017)
- The Evergreen State College — Master of Public Administration (2011)
- Saint Martin’s University — B.A., Business Administration, concentration in Finance (2009)
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Seattle Office
Phone |
206.448.1777
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Phone |
206.339.8541
Spokane Office
Phone |
360.533.2710
