Joe Hobson
Overview
Joe Hobson has been practicing business and organization law, helping design and develop small business and public and private institutions and associations for 40 years. He concentrates his practice in business and property law with special emphasis on private, nonprofit and quasi-public entities. The majority of his clients are individual farms or forest owners, or entities that represent the interests of farms or forest owners. Joe has helped organize and represent several special districts and some notable businesses involved in processing and marketing agricultural products nationally and internationally. He began representing private nonprofit associations and public charities when he started working with the Oregon Farm Bureau in 1987.
Joe’s work with the Oregon Farm Bureau grew until he left private practice to become the first general counsel of the Oregon Farm Bureau Federation in 1995. Joe helped develop the structure and function of the Oregon Farm Bureau over the years, including development of a nationally recognized legal advocacy program. He created the Oregon Agricultural Education Foundation and the Oregon Agricultural Legal Foundation.
Joe began his career in the title insurance industry and helped form new title insurance and escrow operations in Portland for a large national title insurance company. His early experience included a litigation practice involving business and property law, including title insurance defense.
Joe has experience with:
- Business Law
- Agricultural Law
- Organizing and maintaining small business organizations, including succession planning
- Organizing and maintaining public and quasi-public Special Districts with an agricultural purpose such as Irrigation and Drainage Districts and ORS Chapter 554 Corporations
- Organizing and maintaining charitable and other non-profit organizations
Testimonial
"We were a 28 year client of Joseph H. Hobson and chose to stay when he joined Schwabe. Joe has always provided excellent service his joining Schwabe has given us access to other attorneys who have also given us excellent service."
-WUSATA
Experience
Experience
- Helped form the City of Keizer, Oregon.
- Helped create and shared the office of first Keizer City Attorney.
- Served as first General Counsel, Oregon Farm Bureau Federation.
- Helped create and develop the Oregon Agricultural Education Foundation.
- Helped create and develop the Oregon Agricultural Legal Foundation and served as its initial Director.
- Director, National Agricultural Law Center.
Memberships & Awards
Memberships
-
Helped organize and served as chair of the Agricultural Law Section, Oregon State Bar Association
Awards
- Outstanding service to Oregon’s agricultural industry, Oregon Department of Agriculture, 1999
- President’s Award, Oregon Farm Bureau Federation, 2003
Resources & Ideas
News
- Capital PressDecember 12, 2019
- Schwabe expands its Salem office space to accommodate five new professionalsMay 4, 2017
Seminars & Speaking Engagements
- May 12, 2021
- Zoom, March 9, 2021
- Agricultural Law Section MeetingOregon State BarMay 17, 2019
- Oregon State Bar Agricultural Law Section Annual "Round-Up" CLE ProgramMay 17, 2019
- Farm Succession and Estate PlanningFarm Preservation ProgramJanuary 22, 2019
- Getting Organized: Agriculture LawOregon State UniversityNovember 27, 2018
- Getting Organized – Farm and Ranch Business and Succession PlanningPolk County Fairgrounds, 520 S Pacific Hwy W, Rickreall, OR 97371, August 11, 2018
- Getting Organized – Farm and Ranch Business and Succession PlanningPolk County Fairgrounds, 520 S Pacific Hwy W, Rickreall, OR 97371, August 9, 2018
- Forest, Farm & Ranch Estate and Succession PlanningMay 29, 2018
- April 30, 2018
- April 19, 2018
- Getting Organized – Farm and Ranch Business and Succession PlanningBerry Growers Conference Wellspring Conference Center, 1475 Mt Hood Ave, Woodburn, OR 97071, March 14, 2018
- Getting Organized – Farm and Ranch Business and Succession PlanningNut Growers SocietyOSU Extension Field Station, 15210 NE Miley Rd, Aurora, OR 97002, March 14, 2018
- Getting Organized – Farm and Ranch Business and Succession PlanningCorvallis/Philomath Farmer Intensive Gathering Together Farm Restaurant, 25159 Grange Hall Rd, Philomath, OR 97370, February 4, 2018
- Getting Organized – Farm and Ranch Business and Succession PlanningTillamook Dairy Co-op Tillamook Bay Community College, 4301 3rd St, Tillamook, OR 97141, January 16, 2018
- November 10, 2017
- Pronghorn Resort 65600 Pronghorn Club Drive Bend, OR 97701, November 10, 2017
- October 31, 2017
Publications
- August 7, 2020
- May 8, 2020
- Oregon State University - Open Educational ResourcesDecember 17, 2019
- November 3, 2017
Community Activities
Community Activities
- Oregon Agricultural Trust, Board of Directors
Services
Services
- Acquisition and Disposition
- Agency Actions and Rulemaking
- Business and Corporate
- Corporate Formation and Governance
- Environmental Compliance and Safety
- Environmental Regulation and Litigation
- Finance
- Land Use and Entitlement
- Leasing
- Privately Held Businesses & Enterprises
- Public Lands and Endangered Species
- Real Estate
- Tax and Estate Planning
- Trusts and Estate Planning
- Water Law
Education
- Willamette University College of LawJuris Doctor Degree, 1975
- Northwest Nazarene CollegeBachelor of Arts degree, 1972
Admissions
Oregon State Bar
Washington State Bar
Outside The Office
- Hiking in the McDonald State Forest, OSU’s research forest