Robert E.L. Bonaparte

Robert E.L. Bonaparte is a partner at Bonaparte & Leggatt, LLC in Portland, Oregon, whose practice focuses on insurance coverage disputes and civil litigation. Bonaparte represents policyholders in property insurance claims, fire loss matters, business interruption disputes, and other insurance claims. His broader practice includes complex litigation and environmental law. He helps individuals and businesses evaluate coverage issues, challenge disputed insurance decisions, and pursue resolutions through negotiation, litigation, or other dispute-resolution processes.

Bonaparte earned his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law and both an A.M. and A.B. from Stanford University. Before establishing his Oregon practice, he worked as an associate at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft in New York and Ross, Dixon & Bell in Washington, D.C. His education and early legal experience laid the foundation for handling complex insurance coverage questions, commercial disputes, and litigation requiring detailed analysis of policies, exclusions, damages, and contractual obligations.

Bonaparte has substantial experience representing policyholders in insurance disputes involving homes, businesses, property damage, and interrupted operations. His official profile highlights Fleming v. USAA as a landmark insurance coverage case that attracted significant attention within Oregon’s insurance industry. His practice also encompasses fire loss claims, complex civil litigation, and environmental matters. Through these cases, he helps clients interpret insurance policies, evaluate coverage positions, document losses, and pursue claims when insurers dispute or limit available coverage.

Robert E.L. Bonaparte has served as National Co-Chair of the American Bar Association Insurance Coverage Subcommittee on Practice and Procedure and as President of the Owen Panner Inn of Court. He has also served as an arbitrator for court, bar, and private arbitration programs in Oregon. A frequent legal education lecturer and published author, Bonaparte brings extensive insurance litigation and dispute-resolution experience to clients facing complex coverage and property loss matters.

Law Office Affiliations

• Partner, Bonaparte & Leggatt, LLC
• Member, Oregon State Bar
• Member, Multnomah Bar Association
• Member, Oregon Trial Lawyers Association

Licensed State

• Oregon

Education

• Virginia Law School
  Juris Doctor (JD)
• Stanford University
  AM
• Stanford University
  AB

Awards & Badges