New Hires, Promotions, Partners

Sarah Barnes, Marquette 2013, has joined National Benefit Services LLC, Kansas City, Mo., as senior legal counsel.

Victoria “Tori” Dietel-Bargender, Marquette 2025, has joined Milwaukee-based Gimbel Reilly Guerin & Brown LLP with the family law and civil litigation teams.

Three attorneys have joined Godfrey & Kahn S.C. Andrew Benson, U.W. 2019 cum laude, is with the Estates & Trusts Practice in the Milwaukee office. Erin Hoffert, George Mason 2014 cum laude, is special counsel with the Corporate Practice in the Green Bay office. Chris Scherer, University of Illinois – Chicago 1999, is a shareholder with the Intellectual Property Practice in the Milwaukee office.

Julius T. Rohwer, Marquette 2025, and Jacob R. Wendt, Marquette 2025, have joined Godfrey, Leibsle, Blackbourn & Howarth S.C., Elkhorn, as associates. Rohwer focuses on litigation. Wendt focuses on business and real estate.

Peter Kelly-Smith, Minnesota 2021 cum laude, has joined Gingras, Thomsen & Wachs as an associate in the Milwaukee office. He previously worked as a judicial clerk for the Honorable Daniel Moreno (Minnesota trial court); the Honorable Elise Larson (Minnesota Court of Appeals); and from 2023 to 2025, the Honorable Pamela Pepper, Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.

Brendan McMahon, Marquette 2025, has joined Burbach & Stansbury S.C., Milwaukee, as an associate and practices exclusively in family law. He assists clients in a wide array of issues, including divorce support, property division, prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, legal custody, and physical placement.

Luis Padilla Jr., Golden Gate 1986, has joined Lindner & Marsack S.C., a management-side labor and employment firm, as a partner in the Milwaukee office. Padilla has served as first chair and chief spokesperson in collective bargaining for municipal, multinational, and regional employers and has extensive experience representing employers in grievance arbitrations, union organizing campaigns, and before the National Labor Relations Board. He assists clients with contract interpretation, unfair labor practice defense, and representation matters; provides strategic counsel in areas such as recruitment, discipline, and terminations; and advises clients on the interpretation and administration of collective bargaining agreements. Padilla is fully bilingual in English and Spanish.

Doug Poland, Loyola 1994, has joined the nonprofit, pro-democracy firm Law Forward, Madison, as director of litigation. Poland, a trial and appellate attorney who has played a key role in multiple successful challenges to Wisconsin’s gerrymandered legislative maps and other cases protecting voting rights and fair representation, co-founded Law Forward in 2020 and is now joining the staff on a full-time basis. He previously was a partner at Kirkland & Ellis, Godfrey & Kahn, Rathje Woodward, and Stafford Rosenbaum.

Sean Lees, Marquette 2015 cum laude, and Erik T. Olsen, U.W. 2021 magna cum laude, have joined Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c. Lees is with the Litigation and Labor and Employment Practices in the Milwaukee office, providing counsel to clients on matters including defending against employment discrimination claims, collective bargaining, and labor arbitration, and has extensive experience litigating civil cases at the circuit court level and representing clients before the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Olsen is with the Litigation Practice in the Madison office and represents clients in civil matters, with a particular focus on white-collar criminal defense and complex commercial litigation. He advises businesses and individuals facing complex disputes, governmental investigations, and regulatory enforcement actions. Most recently, Olsen served as an attorney advisor in the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Security Division.

Aaron M. Stroede, U.W. 2021, has joined Bell, Moore & Richter S.C., Madison, as an associate. He focuses his practice on civil litigation, general liability, insurance defense, and medical malpractice.

Tristan A. Dollinger, Marquette 2015 summa cum laude, has joined the Milwaukee office of von Briesen & Roper s.c. as a shareholder and practices in the Health Law and the Business and Corporate Law Sections. He has significant experience representing long-term care, assisted living, physical and occupational therapy, dental, chiropractic, and surgical practices in mergers and acquisitions, transactions, regulatory compliance and corporate governance for clients.

Erik M. Gustafson, Marquette 2017 magna cum laude, has been promoted to shareholder with the firm. Gustafson is with the Litigation and Risk Management Section and focuses on first- and third-party insurance coverage analysis, counseling on bad-faith claims, and appellate advocacy.

Brandon J. Conway, U.W. 2021, and Nicole A. Swails, Mitchell Hamline 2022 magna cum laude, have joined Wayne Law S.C., Madison, as associates. Conway focuses on business litigation, professional liability, probate litigation, real estate litigation, and construction litigation. Swails focuses on business litigation, probate litigation, real estate litigation, and estate planning.

Zach Zierson, Marquette 2025, has joined Grzeca Law Group, Milwaukee, as an immigration attorney with a focus on business immigration. He helps guide employers through the various stages of the immigration process from initial transfer through permanent residence.

Mergers, Relocations, New Offices

Steven Guth, U.W. 2025, has opened Guth Law of South Central Wisconsin LLC in Monroe.

Appointments, Elections

The Association of Corporate Counsel-WI has elected board members and executive officers for 2025-26. New board members are the following:

Bryce Cox, Marquette 2011, is associate general counsel, USA for the Foxconn Technology Group, Milwaukee, and has extensive experience in in-house and private-practice settings across a broad range of areas, including commercial transactions, real estate and construction, corporate governance, employment, government relations, and litigation.

Kavin Tedamrongwanish, Marquette 2014, is director, legal counsel, and assistant secretary for Badger Meter Inc., Milwaukee. His duties cover areas including public procurement and municipal law, construction services, commercial transactions, insurance, mergers and acquisitions, corporate compliance, cybersecurity, and general risk assessment.

Jeff Lewis, Hamline 2010, is associate general counsel for digital initiatives, connected care, and technical services at Baxter International Inc., Elm Grove. He supports Baxter’s connected care business and enterprise software and digital applications and has experience in compliance and privacy matters, technology licensing, AI development and deployment, data governance and analytics, and strategic partnerships.

Newly elected executive officers are the following: president – Anthony Flint, Marquette 2011, Ariens Co., Beloit; vice president – Pranav Shah, Chicago-Kent 1999, WEA Member Benefits, Madison; secretary – Timothy Schmidt, Minnesota 2009, Komatsu, Milwaukee; treasurer – Pamela G. Stokke-Ceci, Marquette 2013, SC2Law LLC, Wauwatosa; and past president – Jascha Beck Walter, Marquette 1999, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co., Milwaukee.

Carl Kugler, U.W. 1998, and Chris Rechlicz, U.W. 2002, have been elected to the board of Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c. for three-year terms. Kugler is the managing shareholder in Madison, where he leads the office’s Corporate Law Practice. He works on a wide range of general corporate and commercial transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, and the formation, development and financing of startup and emerging growth companies.

Rechlicz is a shareholder in the Corporate Law and Banking and Finance Practices in Milwaukee, providing legal counsel to banks, financial institutions, mezzanine lenders, equipment finance providers, private equity firms, portfolio companies, and other borrowers and guiding clients through a range of financing transactions.

Authors, Speakers

Maren Beermann, Chicago-Kent 2008, is author of the revised edition of Guardianship and Protective Placement for Older Adults in Wisconsin (State Bar of Wis. 7th ed. 2025). Beerman concentrates her work in guardianships, advance directives, mental health, consumer protection, and protective placement and services.

Jesse B. Blocher, Marquette 2006, is author of the new book Wisconsin Tort Law: Products Liability (State Bar of Wis. 2025). Blocher is a shareholder attorney at Habush, Habush & Rottier S.C.®, Waukesha.

Kevin B. Cronin, Alabama 2012, executive director and assistant general counsel at Wells Fargo Bank in Washington, D.C., spoke about the future of open banking and the use of consumer data on a panel titled “New CFPB Rules on Finance Data Rights: Exploring their Impact on the Next Wave of Digital Banking” at the ABA’s Business Law Spring Meeting in New Orleans in April.

Jerome Grzeca, managing partner of Grzeca Law Group, Milwaukee, spoke at the American Immigration Lawyers Association’s Annual Conference in June in Denver. He served as discussion leader for “Fundamentals Primer on PERM.”

Authors of the revised edition of Hiring and Firing in Wisconsin (State Bar of Wis. 9th ed. 2025) are the following: Robert K. Sholl, Chicago 1981, Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c., Milwaukee; Bradden C. Backer, U.W. 1981, Backer Employment Law LLC, Kenosha; Shannon A. Allen, U.W. 1995, DeWitt LLP, Brookfield; and John C. Gardner, Marquette 2004, DeWitt LLP, Madison.

Rose Ann Wasserman, U.W. 1984, and Stephanie M. Brown, Marquette 2002, have authored the revised edition of A Guide to Wisconsin Employment Discrimination Law (State Bar of Wis. 9th ed. 2025). Wasserman retired as an administrative law judge (ALJ) with the Equal Rights Division (ERD) of the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development. Brown is an ALJ with the ERD in Milwaukee.

James J. Chiolino, U.W. 2007, and Matthew P. White, U.W. 2006, have authored the revised edition of Wisconsin Wages and Hours Handbook (State Bar of Wis. 7th ed. 2025). Chiolino and White are with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development.

In Memoriam

Joseph D. Becker, U.W. 1954, La Crosse, June 27, 1928 – July 25, 2025.

George J. Devine, U.W. 1966, Reedsburg, Sept. 22, 1941 – June 20, 2025.

Carolyn M. Edwards, Toledo 1970, Wauwatosa, May 1, 1942 – May 27, 2025.

Jeffrey A. Hertz, U.W. 1978, Wausau, Sept. 24, 1952 – June 4, 2025.

John J. Kircher, Marquette 1963, Mequon, July 26, 1938 – June 23, 2025.

Barbara J. Kirchner, Ohio Northern 1993, Sheboygan, Jan. 31, 1967 – June 19, 2025.

Jess Martinez Jr., Univ. of California 1974, Waukesha, April 9, 1945 – Jan. 14, 2024.

Jessa Nicholson Goetz, U.W. 2006, Madison, Oct. 11, 1982 – Aug. 6, 2025.

Thomas J. Parins, Harvard 1966, Green Bay, June 17, 1941 – Dec. 12, 2024.

Hon. Stuart A. Schwartz, U.W. 1971, Henderson, Nev., Sept. 5, 1945 – July 23, 2025.

William R. Tehan, U.W. 1981, Wausau, Aug. 29, 1956 – June 18, 2025.

Walter G. Wefel Jr., U.W. 1963, Wisconsin Rapids, May 11, 1937 – June 22, 2025.

Charles E. White, U.W. 1951, River Falls, Nov. 10, 1928 – June 20, 2025.

How to Place your Announcement

If you have moved, become a partner or an associate, or received a promotion or an award, let us know! Writing guidelines are available here. Questions? Email us or call (608) 250-6127.

Email announcements to: MembersOnly@wisbar.org. Notices about State Bar members in good standing are printed as space is available, and subject to editing.

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Deadline: Submit announcements by the first of the month preceding publication. For example, to place an announcement in the November issue, it must be received before October 1. Email to: MembersOnly@wisbar.org. Include your State Bar membership number.