Valerie Sasaki is a seasoned attorney specializing in tax, business, and estate planning at Samuels Yoelin Kantor, LLP, where she is Partner and Chair of the Taxation Practice. She is admitted to practice in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, and Arizona.
Valerie’s expertise extends to multi-jurisdictional tax compliance, audit, and appeal, as well as private business transactional work and high net worth estate planning. In her practice, she represents a diverse clientele, including private companies, individuals, foundations, and government agencies, including the Oregon State Bar Professional Liability Fund.
Ms. Sasaki serves as a fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel and the American College of Trusts and Estate Counsel. She is a member and has served as chair of the Portland Tax Forum, and the Oregon State Bar Taxation and Business Law Sections. In 2022, the Oregon State Bar appointed her to serve as a commissioner of the Oregon Law Commission. Her fellow Commissioners elected her to serve as chair of the Oregon Law Commission. In 2023 She received the Oregon State Bar’s Membership Service Award. She regularly speaks to attorney and accountant professional groups on estate planning, nonprofit, and tax topics.
Valerie is deeply committed to legal education, serving as an Adjunct Professor at several prestigious institutions, including the University of Oregon, Portland State University and Northwestern School of Law, and Lewis & Clark College. Her teaching portfolio encompasses a range of topics, including business law, taxation, estate planning, and state and local taxation. She co-authored Oregon Estate Planning with Forms, published by LexisNexis in 2023. She and her co-author are working on the second edition, which should be released in late 2024.
Having grown up in Lake Oswego, Ms. Sasaki is also passionate about giving back to her local community. She has been involved with several great charities in the area, including Junior Achievement and Portland Taiko. She currently serves d as a Vice Chair of the Japanese Garden Foundation Board and as a volunteer board member with Portland Center Stage.
Prior to her current role, Valerie honed her skills at Miller Nash LLP and KPMG LLP, where she gained valuable professional experience. She holds an LL.M. in Taxation from the University of Washington School of Law, a J.D. from the University of Oregon School of Law, and a B.A. magna cum laude from Newcomb College of Tulane University. In her spare time, Ms. Sasaki enjoys travelling off the beaten path as well as reading and writing speculative fiction.