For this week’s blog post, I am highlighting a yearly legal conference for Wisconsin Lawyers to engage in a multi-day event offering breakout sessions, dine-arounds, plenaries, and networking opportunities, with options for both in-person attendance and virtual participation: The Wisconsin Solo and Small Firm Conference.
The State Bar of Wisconsin’s WSSFC provides opportunities to earn numerous credits of CLE’s, network with attorneys in the community, learn about different legal resources by visiting different exhibitor tables, and of course,
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Buying a Business? You Might Not Be Buying What You Think You’re Buying
Imagine you find the perfect business to buy. The owner is approaching retirement after a long and successful career. The company has a strong reputation in the market. Revenue appears healthy. Employees seem happy and experienced. After some promising conversations, you and the seller strike a deal and work toward closing. At this point, most buyers are excited about why the deal makes sense. After all, the buyer has spent time and effort to reach a deal.
Then the
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Homecomings, Career Changes, and New Beginnings: Meet Wisconsin's New Lawyers
Oct. 1, 2026 — One returned home to Wisconsin after law school in the South. Another arrived after nearly two decades of military service and a 10-year journey toward admission. Another traded a corporate law career in Houston for teaching law students in Madison. On Sept. 22, 2026, their paths converged as they joined Wisconsin’s legal profession, most after passing the bar exam. In a ceremony before the Wisconsin Supreme Court, 35 attorneys took the Attorney’s Oath and signed
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Why I Ask Annoying Questions
One of the more annoying parts of hiring a lawyer is that we tend to respond to perfectly good and reasonable questions with more questions.
A client asks whether they can sign a contract, bring in a new partner, buy a business, or hire an intern. Usually, I need to know a little more before I can give a useful answer. Who drafted the agreement? What are you actually agreeing to? Who controls the company? What happens if the
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How to Keep Your Business Clients from Becoming Accidental Creditors
If you are a solo or small firm practitioner in Wisconsin, you might assume that the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), found at 15 U.S.C. § 1601 et seq., is a headache reserved exclusively for banks, mortgage lenders, and auto finance companies.
That assumption would be faulty. In reality, TILA can apply to local businesses, home contractors, and service providers.
When you pair TILA with Wisconsin’s counterpart – the Wisconsin Consumer Act (WCA), Wis. Stat. chapters 421-427 –
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RAGBRAI Biking Lesson: Team Work
In July, I rode my bicycle across the state of Iowa as part of RAGBRAI. RAGBRAI posts that it America’s oldest and longest multi-day recreational bike ride. There were a lot of things that were impressive. The comradery, the logistics, the efforts by individual cyclists, but one thing stood out to me: The Air Force Cycling Team. The US Air Force Cycling Team call themselves “The Guardian Angels Of The Road.” They exemplify their core values of
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Court by Court: Observing Wisconsin’s Municipal Justice System
By Erik Reinthaler, WJI Intern
On a Thursday morning in July, people trickled into Racine Municipal Court for a docket made up mostly of traffic and ordinance violations. Some seemed to know where to go and what to do. Others needed to be reminded to check in on a computer near the courtroom entrance. As more people arrived, even other court-goers began pointing newcomers toward the sign-in.
Once court started, cases moved quickly. Defendants came forward, entered their pleas
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Evers’ Judges: Tanner Brook Kilander
”Evers’ judges” is our effort to present information about Gov. Tony Evers’ appointees to the bench. The information is taken from the appointees’ own judgeship applications.
Italics indicate direct quotes from the application. Typos, including punctuation errors, come from the original application even though we have not inserted “(sic)” after each one. WJI has left them as is. Asterisks indicate paragraphs deleted due to length of the answer.
Name: Tanner Brook Kilander
Appointed to: Milwaukee County Circuit Court
Appointment
How Congress Actually Works – An Intern’s Perspective
You can learn a lot about the federal government in school and everyday life, but in my experience, nothing beats being a part of it. I spent the first four months of 2026 in Washington, D.C., working and studying as an intern and student on Capitol Hill. They were the busiest four months of my life, but I have never learned more. Here’s what I still think about now that it’s been a little while.
When people think about
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To Build Trial Lawyers, Give Young Attorneys Their Day in Court
Wisconsin, like most states, has a growing shortage of skilled civil trial lawyers, especially in rural areas throughout the state. Jeffrey Muszynski discusses the steps Wisconsin is taking to address this issue and urges members of the bar to do more to keep alive the tradition of highly skilled advocates in the state.
For many younger attorneys in Wisconsin, trial work can feel increasingly out of reach. This is especially true outside of criminal cases, as civil trials become
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If It’s Good Writing, So What if They Used AI?
If it’s good writing, so what if they used AI? That’s the question at the heart of a recent essay by writer Abi Awomosu, “Writing Was Never a Test of Who Could Think” (How Not To Use AI, June 14, 2026).
Awomosu argues that AI functions less like a tool and more like a medium, something that reshapes how people think and work simply by existing. Seen through that lens, the question of whether AI was used in the
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Evers’ Judges: Nathan Petrashek
”Evers’ judges” is our effort to present information about Gov. Tony Evers’ appointees to the bench. The information is taken from the appointees’ own judgeship applications.
Italics indicate direct quotes from the application. Typos, including punctuation errors, come from the original application even though we have not inserted “(sic)” after each one. WJI has left them as is.
Name: Nathan Petrashek
Appointed to: Court of Appeals District 1
Appointment date: Feb. 27, 2026, to term ending July 31, 2027
Accepted But Still Unpaid: How Attorney Pierobon Mays Held an Insurance Carrier Accountable
By Attorney Lisa Pierobon Mays
One of the most frustrating experiences an injured worker can face is having their workers’ compensation claim accepted – only to have benefits unnecessarily delayed for months.
Recently, Attorney Lisa Pierobon Mays of Mays Law Office successfully represented M.M., a health care employee, whose case demonstrates why injured workers often need experienced legal representation even after their claim has been conceded.
A Conceded Claim Shouldn’t Become a Battle
M.M. injured his left knee while
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Hiring Your First Out-Of-State Employee? Watch for These Compliance Risks
Hiring your first out-of-state employee can introduce a complex web of local and state employment laws that may differ dramatically from those you already follow. From paid leave requirements and pay transparency laws to non-compete restrictions and city-specific ordinances, multi-state employment compliance can quickly become a challenge for unprepared employers.
Hiring an Out-of-State Employee Requires Extra Caution
Stop. Look. Listen.
I remember seeing these safety signs at railroad crossings when I was growing up. Stopping, looking and listening was
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Efficiency is Not Optional: Productivity Tips for Solo and Small Firm Attorneys
Running a solo or small law office means managing every aspect of the practice. Roles as attorney, receptionist, intake coordinator, billing department, IT support, marketer, and file clerk can all become part of the workday.
One theme becomes clear quickly: efficiency is not optional. It is survival.
Even modest operational changes can have a significant impact. Improving productivity does not always require additional software or expanded staffing. Thoughtful systems and consistent practices that reduce friction and preserve focus on
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Has Supreme Court Signaled an Upcoming Change to Attorney Discipline?
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has revoked the licenses of three attorneys this year, and in each case Justice Annette Ziegler wrote identical short concurrences highlighting that when the high court revokes a license, it may not have the effect the public thinks.
“I write separately to point out that in Wisconsin the ‘revocation’ of an attorney’s law license is not truly revocation because the attorney may petition for reinstatement after a period of five years,” said Ziegler in each
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