The matters below reflect the range of criminal, regulatory, investigative, and administrative work handled by Steve Ungar and the Ungar Law Office team. Some entries describe representation through a proceeding rather than a favorable outcome. Public matters may identify involved parties; other descriptions omit client names. Prior outcomes do not guarantee a similar result.
No criminal prosecution; favorable resolution before the Oregon Medical Board.
Ungar Law Office represented an internal medicine specialist in a criminal investigation and a related Oregon Medical Board proceeding involving alleged violations of the Oregon Medical Practice Act. The matter concluded in 2023 without prosecution and with a favorable board result.
Confidential civil settlement resolved criminal and regulatory allegations.
The firm represented a for-profit student loan company operating online in an investigation by the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation. The matter concluded in 2017 through a confidential civil settlement addressing criminal and civil regulatory allegations.
Licensing and enforcement issues resolved after investigations in multiple states.
Ungar Law Office represented an international online lottery vendor in resolving licensing and regulatory enforcement issues arising from state-law investigations in multiple jurisdictions. The engagement concluded in 2022.
Ongoing regulatory analysis for lottery and sports betting operations.
Since 2019, the firm has prepared legal opinion letters addressing lottery and sports betting operations, regulatory requirements, and market-entry questions.
Complaint dismissed after a full investigation.
An OB-GYN faced allegations of malpractice and other violations of the Oregon Medical Practice Act raised by the physician’s hospital. Ungar Law Office defended the physician through the investigation, and the complaint was dismissed in 2025.
Legislative drafting and government-affairs counsel for an independent nonprofit pharmacy.
Since 2022, Ungar Law Office has assisted an independent nonprofit pharmacy with legislative drafting and broader government-affairs matters affecting its operations.
Stipulated order and confidential settlement; no action against the individual license.
The firm represented an independent insurance agency and its owner before the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation following a full investigation and a ten-year audit. The 2023 matter concluded through a stipulated order and confidential settlement, with no action taken against the owner’s license.
Complaints defended successfully, including favorable administrative appeals.
Since 2019, Ungar Law Office has represented healthcare workers accused of violating Department of Human Services rules involving patients in hospitals, long-term care facilities, and home-health settings. The firm defended complaints and pursued contested-case appeals before administrative law judges.
Oregon settlement reached; Washington proceeding closed without discipline or sanctions.
The firm represented a physical therapist before the Oregon Physical Therapy Licensing Board and the Washington State Department of Health in matters involving alleged charting deficiencies, insurance fraud, and other misconduct. The Oregon matter settled in 2024, while Washington imposed no discipline or sanctions.
Licensing settlements negotiated through Oregon and Washington monitoring programs.
Since 2015, Ungar Law Office has represented healthcare professionals addressing substance-use issues and related licensing concerns. The firm negotiated resolutions involving Oregon’s Health Professionals’ Services Program and Washington’s monitoring program.
Multijurisdictional settlement resolved municipal noise, traffic, zoning, and related allegations.
Ungar Law Office represented an Oregon music and entertainment venue in proceedings involving alleged noise, traffic, zoning, and other municipal violations. The matter concluded through a multijurisdictional settlement in 2015.
Settlement reached with the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation.
The firm represented a national mortgage bank in an Oregon regulatory matter involving alleged negligent misrepresentation in the collection of rental payments from apartment tenants across all 50 states.
Counsel to tribal casinos and councils across five Western states since 2000.
Ungar Law Office has advised tribal casinos and tribal councils in Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and California on audits, compact matters, internal investigations, government investigations, and operational legal issues.
Representation after federal cigarette-tax audits and a joint FBI and ATF enforcement action.
Ungar Law Office represented Frank’s Landing Indian Community, an independent federally established statutory entity, and numerous tribal members in the wake of a federal raid on the landing following federal cigarette-tax audits and FBI and ATF joint task force efforts to shut down smoke shops and related businesses. Steve Ungar served as co-counsel in the Ninth Circuit case Nisqually Tribe v. Frank’s Landing Indian Community (2005).
Counsel in connected civil, criminal, and tax investigations in Montana and Oregon.
Ungar Law Office has represented church clergy in civil and criminal investigations and prosecutions, including related IRS audits. The matters span Montana engagements from 1985 to 1990 and Oregon engagements from 2019 to the present.
Counsel to a contractor in a RICO prosecution and related licensing-board proceeding.
In 2020, the firm represented a drywall contractor involved in an alleged criminal enterprise prosecuted under RICO statutes and in a related matter before the Oregon Construction Contractors Board.
Regulatory and intellectual-property coordination for gaming and amusement ventures.
Since 1985, Ungar Law Office has advised startup companies in wagering, gambling, video gaming, and non-gambling amusement markets, including coordinated work with intellectual-property counsel.
Government-affairs counsel for companies entering U.S. and international wagering markets.
Since 2012, Ungar Law Office has represented gaming and lottery companies expanding into new markets in the United States and internationally, informed by Steve Ungar’s experience as VLC counsel and Chairman of the Oregon State Lottery.
Proceeding resolved in favor of clients; video lottery placement retained.
Oregon’s video lottery program generates substantial revenue for licensed establishments and for state education and economic development programs. When administrative action threatened the placement of video lottery terminals in client establishments, Steve Ungar represented the affected parties before the relevant Oregon regulatory body.
The proceeding turned on questions of licensing, compliance, and the regulatory authority governing the placement of lottery gaming devices in Oregon bars and taverns. Following the administrative proceeding, OregonLive reported that bars would keep their video lottery machines, reflecting a favorable resolution for the clients represented by Ungar Law Office.
Represented client in federal investigation arising from Oregon investment fund collapse.
Capital Consultants LLC was an Oregon investment management firm whose collapse in 2000 and 2001 resulted in one of the largest investment fraud scandals in Oregon history. Pension funds, public employee retirement systems, and other institutional investors sustained substantial losses when the firm’s mismanagement and misappropriation of assets became known.
Steve Ungar represented an Oregon fund manager connected to the Capital Consultants matter during federal investigation and plea proceedings. The case required navigating complex financial fraud statutes, coordination with federal investigators, and counsel through the resolution of charges arising from the firm’s collapse.
Defense counsel through jury trial in nationally covered proceedings.
In 1985, Steven Ungar served as defense counsel in a Montana murder and kidnapping trial that drew national press attention. The case involved charges arising from events in a remote wilderness area and attracted coverage from The New York Times, The Washington Post, and the Chicago Tribune, each of which reported on the proceedings and the verdict.
The trial raised questions that reached well beyond the courtroom, touching on themes of wilderness culture, self-sufficiency, and the boundary between rural and urban perspectives on justice. The intense media scrutiny created a challenging environment for the defense, requiring careful management of both the legal strategy and the public narrative surrounding the case.
Steve Ungar represented the client through the full course of proceedings, including the jury trial.
Represented client before Oregon election regulators.
A statewide political organization undertook a get-out-the-vote canvassing initiative during the 2018 general election, sending volunteers door to door to assist voters in returning their ballots. A single box of approximately 100 ballots collected through that effort was not delivered to county election officials until the day after the November 6 election deadline, rendering those ballots uncounted.
The Oregon Secretary of State Elections Division received a formal complaint and opened an investigation. Steve Ungar, serving as counsel for the organization, represented the client in its response to state election regulators.
Civil settlement with the SEC. No criminal prosecution.
An Oregon technology entrepreneur developed and operated two online trading platforms that allowed users to buy, sell, and trade securities using Bitcoin and Litecoin. The platforms attracted thousands of account holders and facilitated hundreds of thousands of trades over approximately fourteen months. Neither platform was registered as a broker-dealer or securities exchange as required under federal law.
When the Securities and Exchange Commission opened an enforcement action, Steve Ungar represented the client throughout the investigation. He worked with the client to document substantial cooperation with SEC staff and to convey the client’s contributions to the agency’s understanding of emerging cryptocurrency technology at a time when regulatory frameworks for digital assets were still taking shape.
The matter resolved through a civil settlement. The client paid disgorgement of profits and a civil monetary penalty. No criminal charges were filed.
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