Elden Rosenthal retired from the practice of law in 2019. During his career, Elden was one of Oregon’s most respected and successful trial lawyers. Â
In 1990, Elden received national attention when he served as co-counsel in the landmark case of Seraw v. Metzger. Tom Metzger, leader of the White Aryan Resistance, was accused of inciting members of his organization to violence leading to the death of Mulegeta Seraw, a black Ethiopian. A jury ordered Metzger and his co-conspirators to pay the family $12.5 million in civil damages. Click here for article.
In 2006, Elden again made national headlines for his work as co-counsel in settling claims on behalf of Oregon attorney Brandon Mayfield against the FBI. After incorrect fingerprint identification, Mayfield was wrongfully arrested and detained by the FBI. The federal government paid Mayfield and his family $2 million to settle their claim and apologized to Mr. Mayfield for his ordeal. Click here to read Mayfield opinion.
Elden received the Oregon State Bar’s highest honor, the Award of Merit, in 1991, and that same year the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association honored Elden as the organization’s first recipient of its Public Justice Award. In 2007 Elden received the A.C.L.U. of Oregon’s top honor, the E.B. McNaughton Award, and in 2008 the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association gave Mr. Rosenthal its top award, the Distinguished Trial Lawyer Award. In 2013, the Oregon chapter of the American College of Trial Lawyers presented him with the Don H. Marmaduke Access to Justice Award.
Elden served on the National Board of Directors of the Southern Poverty Law Center for almost a decade.
Elden is the author of The Plaintiff Lawyer’s Playbook, Insights & Recommendations on How to Prepare for Success in Settling & Trying cases, published by Trial Guides in 2019. Click here for more information about The Playbook.
Elden can be reached at [email protected].