Lewis & Clark Law School announced that alumnus Román Hernández ’00 will deliver the commencement address for the May 18, 2024 event.
Speaking before 250 graduates, their family and friends, Román Hernández will share the challenging pathway that led him to be the distinguished attorney and celebrated leader of his community today.
Hernández is the youngest of eight children; their parents immigrated to the United States from Mexico and were migrant farmworkers in Texas, Michigan, and Ohio before they settled in Oregon. “My parents had very little formal education, but they were hardworking and intelligent,” he says. “They instilled in us the value of education as a means to success.”
Hernández has parlayed those lessons into a stellar law career. He is a partner at the Portland law firm of Cable Huston, LLP, where he has a national litigation practice focusing on employment law and commercial litigation. He has appeared before the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
He received his Bachelor of Science degree in General Science with a co-major in Aerospace Studies from Oregon State University (OSU). Following his graduation from OSU, Román served on active duty in the U.S. Air Force for nearly five years before separating at the rank of Captain to pursue his law degree. Román received his Juris Doctor from Lewis & Clark Law School in 2000 where he was inducted into the Cornelius Honor Society upon graduation.
Devoted to his community, Román has a long record of community service including service to Lewis & Clark Law School as a member of its Board of Visitors. When he was just a second-year associate, Román was one of three founders of the Oregon Hispanic Bar Association (OHBA) in 2002. He is the only person from Oregon to have served as National President of the Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA). He is a Co-founder of The HNBA Legal Education Fund, the HNBA’s charitable foundation. Román served on the Board of Directors of the Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber, including serving as its Chairman. Román is a former Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Portland Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, one of the 12 banks that comprise the central banking system of the United States. Román is a former member of the Board of Directors of The Oregon Community Foundation (OCF), which is the sixth largest community foundation in the nation. He also is a former member of the Board of Directors of the Oregon Health & Sciences University, Oregon’s only academic health center and Portland’s largest private employer. In 2021, he was appointed by Governor Kate Brown to serve a 4-year term on the Board of Trustees of Oregon State University (OSU), Oregon’s largest public university. On July 1, 2024, Román will begin his service as OSU Board Chair, and will be the first Latino or Latino to lead OSU in this important role.
In recognition of his strong record of service to his communities, Román has received accolades from varied and diverse organizations and institutions, including the “Distinguished Graduate Award” from Lewis & Clark Law School; the “Ohtli Award” from the Government of Mexico (the highest award presented to a non-Mexican citizen); the “Edwin J. Peterson Professionalism Award” from the Oregon Bench and Bar Commission on Professionalism; the “Distinguished Business Law Graduate Award” from Lewis & Clark Law School; the “Paul J. De Muniz Professionalism Award” from the OHBA; the “President’s Diversity & Inclusion Award” and the “Diversity and Inclusion Champion Award” from the Oregon State Bar; the “Civil Rights Champion Award” from the Oregon League of Minority Voters; the “J. Michael Brown Award” from the DuPont Minority Counsel Network; the “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Alumni Legacy Award” from Oregon State University; the first-ever “Judge Learned Hand Emerging Leadership Award” from the American Jewish Committee, Oregon Chapter; the “Distinguished Citizen Award” from the Cascade Pacific Council Boy Scouts of America; and the “Spirit of Excellence Award” from the American Bar Association; among many other honors.
