Wilson Elser Enhances Pacific Northwest Presence with Addition of Lateral Team in Portland, Oregon

NEW YORK, July 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- National law firm Wilson Elser announced today that it added an eight-attorney lateral team with a focus on insurance coverage and extra-contractual litigation matters to the Portland, Oregon, office. The new team bolsters Wilson Elser's strong footprint in the Pacific Northwest. 

Lloyd Bernstein, Kirsten Curtis, Christina Anh Ho and Bryce Adams joined as partners. Lisa Cronin and Jacqueline Mitchson joined as of counsel. Completing the legal team are associates Thomas Belesiu and Sean Downing.

The new hires will be a part of Wilson Elser's national Insurance & Reinsurance Coverage Practice, which includes hundreds of attorneys across the firm's 43 U.S. offices. The new coverage team complements the capabilities offered by the Portland office attorneys in the Medical Malpractice & Health Care, Professional Liability & Services, and Toxic Tort practices.

"We welcome the new team to Wilson Elser as our client demand in the Pacific Northwest requires more attorneys focused on insurance coverage matters," said George Pitcher, Regional Managing Partner of Wilson Elser's Portland office. "Lloyd and his team should have a seamless cross-town transition as they go to work for our existing and new clients."

"When we first opened in Portland, Wilson Elser met its priority of expanding our presence in the Pacific Northwest to meet growing client needs," said firm Chair Daniel J. McMahon. "With these new acquisitions we are diversifying our Portland service offerings and adding a leading team specializing in our core of insurance work."

Bernstein added: "My team and I chose to move to Wilson Elser for its strong reputation, deep bench of attorneys, and national footprint. The name recognition will allow the team to promote our practice throughout the country."

The New Laterals

Partners 

Lloyd Bernstein
Lloyd Bernstein has been representing insurers and businesses in the Pacific Northwest for more than 25 years. His practice involves various types of policies, including Property & Casualty, Professional Services, Employment & Fiduciary, Builders Risk & Inland Marine, Technology & Cyber, and Excess & Surplus Lines.

In addition to his role as a partner at his previous firm, Bernstein served on its board of directors, and was President of the Oregon Association of Defense Counsel in 2020. He earned a J.D. degree from California Western School of Law and a B.S. degree from the State University of New York, Plattsburg.

Kirsten Curtis
Kirsten Curtis is adept at assisting Special Investigation Units with defense of first- and third-party claims. With more than a decade of experience, she advises coverage providers in Oregon and Washington.

Curtis earned a J.D. degree from the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law and a B.A. degree in Political Science from Oregon State University. She is president of
Cascade Women Lawyers.

Christina Anh Ho
Christina Anh Ho has more than a decade of experience in litigation with a focus on first- and third-party litigation. She has conducted successful arbitrations and trials in Oregon and Washington, and assisted in trials in California.

Ho earned a J.D. degree from the University of Missouri School of Law and a B.A. degree in Political Science from the University of California, Davis.

Bryce Adams
Bryce Adams represents multinational insurer clients primarily in a first-party setting, with an emphasis on Oregon's evolving bad faith law. He pursues strategies emphasizing motion practice on cutting-edge issues such as the standard of care set forth for carriers in the Oregon Insurance Code and the role of physical impacts in pleading non-economic damages.

Adams earned a J.D. degree from Lewis & Clark Law School and a B.A. degree in Political Science from the University of Oregon.

Other Attorneys on the Lateral Team

Lisa Cronin and Jacqueline Mitchson have joined the firm as of counsel.

Joining as associates are Thomas Belesiu and Sean Downing.

Related Office Practice Areas
Insurance and Reinsurance Coverage Practice 

Related Offices
Portland Office

About Wilson Elser
Wilson Elser is the preeminent defense litigation firm in the United States. At any given time, our more than 1,300 attorneys are engaged in some 100,000 defense and coverage matters, with many defending clients in various local, state, and federal courts. Indeed, over more than four decades, our litigation, coverage, and trial lawyers have gained a reputation for taking on and prevailing in the most challenging and technical cases, frequently "parachuting in" to assume unresolved matters from other law firms. Our success also derives from winning on our clients' terms and rigorously adhering to their guidelines. We are ranked 95 in the Am Law 100 and 36 in the National Law Journal's NLJ 500. For more information, go to www.wilsonelser.com

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SOURCE Wilson Elser