Ron Saxton, an attorney and business executive, as well as former Oregon gubernatorial candidate, will be joining Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt’s Portland office as a Shareholder as of January 1, 2015.

“We are proud to have Ron Saxton with us. He has a unique blend of legal, business and political experience that makes him ‎ideal for advising senior management and boards on a wide range of corporate ‎initiatives and strategies. He has broad experience with international business, public-‎private partnerships, and various issues facing U.S. businesses, which will serve our clients well,”‎ said Mark Long, the firm’s Managing Partner.

Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Saxton served as Executive Vice President at global door and window manufacturer JELD-WEN for more than seven years. He also served as its global Chief Administrative Officer, and ‎was involved in significant business and legal activities throughout the company and the ‎world. During that time, Mr. Saxton was on the Executive Committee of the National Association of Manufacturers and was Chair of the Energy and Environmental Committee as well as its Political Action Committee.

Prior to his role at JELD-WEN, Mr. Saxton practiced law for almost 30 years and co-founded the law firm Ater Wynne, serving as the firm’s Chair for more than ten years. His practice focused on business, regulatory, and energy law. Mr. Saxton served as outside general counsel to several companies and as the energy attorney for companies in forest products, aluminum, and other industries. He represented a variety of manufacturers, utility, and energy companies on their finance, regulatory, contracting, and environmental matters. He was also the lead attorney for several large infrastructure public-private partnerships and has extensive experience with state and federal regulatory agencies. In 2006, Mr. Saxton was a candidate for Governor of Oregon and was involved in a wide range of political activities.

A native Oregonian, Mr. Saxton has a long history of involvement in Oregon civic and charitable activities, currently serving on the Oregon Educational Investment Board and the Board of Directors of Oregon Public Broadcasting. He has ‎previously served on the Portland Public Schools Board. In 2010, Mr. Saxton was selected to lead Governor John Kitzhaber’s primary and secondary education transition team to work on educational issues. He is the founding president of the Portland Schools Foundation, Oregon’s largest public education foundation.

He earned his J.D. from University of Virginia School of Law and his Bachelor’s degree from Willamette University.