Tipp Coburn Lockwood, PC

Attorney Bryan Charles Tipp

Bryan Charles Tipp practices law in Missoula, MT, for Tipp Coburn & Associates PC, and was also born and raised in Missoula, graduating from Loyola Sacred Heart High School in 1980. After obtaining a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Montana in Business Administration, he attended and graduated from the University of Puget Sound School of Law (now the Seattle University School of Law) in 1987.

After short stints with the City Prosecutor’s Office and the Pierce County Department of Assigned Counsel in Tacoma, Washington, Bryan began a private law practice in Seattle. Bryan left the firm of Tipp Mitchell & Associates in 1994 to return to Missoula, and thereafter joined Tipp Coburn & Associates PC

Bryan’s criminal defense practice includes the defense of all types of State and Federal offenses, with the additional emphasis of the defense of DUI cases. He is a Founding and Lifetime Member of the Montana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, (MTACDL), the Washington Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and the Montana Institute for Criminal Justice. He is also a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL). Bryan has been taught Standardized Field Sobriety Testing (SFST) and certified pursuant to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) protocol for SFSTs. He has also completed the Intoxilyzer 8000 Operator’s Course. He has attended the National College of DUI Defense at Harvard University, and has organized, administered and spoken at seminars on DUI Defense.

Attorney Torrance L. Coburn

Torrance L. Coburn is an attorney for Tipp Coburn & Associates PC in Missoula, MT, and is a Shareholder with the firm.  Torrance's civil litigation practice focuses primarily on representing Montanans in personal injury and employment law cases.  

Torrance was born in Spokane, Washington, where he lived until moving to Southwest Florida during high school.  After graduating high school, Torrance attended Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History in 1998.  After graduating from college, Torrance felt the pull of the Northwest and moved to Montana, graduating from the University of Montana Law School in 2004.

Torrance’s affinity for Missoula, and Montana in general, began with his great-grandfather, who was born in Miller Creek in 1898.  As a child, Torrance and his family (including his great-grandfather) would travel to Missoula in the spring to assist in yearly calf cutting on the Maloney Ranch.  As can be expected, Torrance had many great experiences during this time, including his first time behind the wheel, driving a pickup to bring hay to the cattle.  It was these memories, along with his love for the mountains and the outdoors generally, that drew him to Missoula.

Attorney Raymond P. Tipp

Raymond P. Tipp practices law in Missoula, MT, for Tipp Coburn & Associates PC, and was born and raised in Froid, Montana, a small town at the eastern edge of the state. After graduating from high school, Ray enlisted in the United States Air Force where he honorably served during the Korean War.

After earning some college credits during his military service, Ray finished his undergraduate education at the University of Montana, graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. Ray matriculated at Hastings School of Law at the University of California in San Francisco, California, before returning to the University of Montana School of Law where he graduated in 1959.

Ray is the founding member of Tipp Coburn & Associates PC. Ray began his legal career, and our firm, shortly after graduating from the University of Montana School of Law. Through the several formulations of our firm over the past 50 years, Ray has remained the one constant.

Ray’s interests and areas of practice are many and varied. In addition to being a Lawyer, he is an entrepreneur and inventor (Ray has over 16 U.S. Patents, as well as other intellectual properties). Ray has hands-on experience in all aspects of business, including manufacturing, marketing and wholesale and retail sales.

Attorney Sarah M. Lockwood

Sarah M. Lockwood is the newest addition to Tipp Coburn & Associates PC in Missoula, MT, coming to the firm in 2013.

Sarah is originally from Buffalo, NY but has permanently relocated to the Wild West. Sarah graduated from the University of Colorado in 2007 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communication. Before matriculating at the University of Montana Law School in 2011, Sarah was managed a custom metal fabrication business in Boulder, Colorado.  

During law school, Sarah was actively involved in a number of student groups and volunteer activities. Sarah was awarded a fellowship from the Montana Public Interest Law Coalition in 2011 to intern with the Montana Innocence Project. Sarah then served as the President of the Montana Public Interest Law Coalition in 2012. During this time, she worked with other students to educate them about volunteer opportunities, and partner them with the appropriate organizations. The Group also sponsored speaking panels comprised of lawyers in the Missoula community, to teach students about programs in place to assist public interest attorney, and raised money for public interest fellowships. Sarah began working with Tipp Coburn & Associates PC during her final year of law school.

In addition to her work with the Montana Public Interest Law Coalition, in 2013 Sarah served as the Secretary and Treasurer of the ACLU, Law Student Chapter. The ACLU funded several events dedicated to student and community outreach. Sarah was also a volunteer hearing officer for the Missoula Housing Authority from 2012-2014. In this work, Sarah was able to gain experience in navigating the interplay between federal laws and policies, and the local programs which implement them. This work was challenging, as people were faced with eviction and loss of housing benefits. Emotions often ran high at the hearings, and Sarah had to serve as an objective third-party to decide whether the Housing Authority could follow through on their proposed actions.