Our firm has always been one of the largest in Western Wisconsin. Our many lawyers provide a full spectrum of services to the La Crosse area, Western Wisconsin and Southeastern Minnesota, including personal injury, accident and trial practice for both plaintiffs and defendants, estate planning and trusts, family law and divorce, and business law of all types, to name a few areas of practice.
Child Support
The remainder of Tom’s practice is devoted to assisting individuals through the divorce process or resolving post-divorce issues. His knowledge and experience in family law includes handling matters involving custody and placement, child support, maintenance, property division, and paternity and injunction issues. Tom gives these matters the personal attention they require because he understands that in addition to fighting for a fair and equitable result, he is responsible for offering guidance through what is oftentimes a very emotional process.
Child Custody and Visitation
Having an experienced family law attorney is important —and when children are involved it’s even more critical that you have a family law attorney who listens to your concerns and protects what is most important to you. Our family law team understands this can be a time of high stress and anxiety, and that it’s important to use results-drive strategies in all family law matters such as divorce, child support, and property division. Whether your case involves child custody and placement, the division of pension plans and other assets, complex family businesses, or other matters, our family law attorneys are committed to helping you achieve your objectives.
Paternity
Guardianship
Mikael joined Hale Skemp in 2020, and works in the areas of guardianship, estate planning, probate and trust administrations, and real estate. She has worked in the legal field for 10 years, and graduated in 2018 from Herzing University with an associate degree in Legal Studies.
Spousal Support
Emily is an associate attorney specializing in litigation, with a primary focus on Family Law. With her exceptional interpersonal skills and extensive knowledge of the law, Emily is a strong advocate for her clients who are navigating complex issues such as custody, placement, child and spousal support, and divorce.
A man in his mid-40s bled to death at his home after being discharged from a rural hospital after an appendectomy. Claims were made against the surgeon and hospital staff. After a two-week trial, damages were awarded to the deceased man’s family for his wrongful death caused by the negligence of the defendants.
Theft
Arson
Successfully represented a man whose vacation home in Wisconsin had burned. The fire insurer denied payment and claimed arson, and that the insured had fraudulently misrepresented his personal property and contents losses.
Front-end planning can prevent litigation and disputes. We provide ongoing counsel from start-up through dissolution to protect the interests of our clients in contract formation, mergers and acquisitions, purchase and sale of business, regulatory approvals and compliance (licensing, permitting, zoning) franchise agreements, or franchising your business.
Business Formation
We are experienced in business formation and organization, including partnerships, Corporations, S-Corps., Limited Liability Companies (LLC), Limited Liability Partnerships (LLP), and limited partnerships. We’ll explain the differences and advise you on tax implications and personal liability.
Business Disputes
Katie Anderson graduated from University of Wisconsin–La Crosse in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in public relations and organizational communication. She has since worked at local law firms as a paralegal and has recently joined Hale Skemp as the family law paralegal. In her previous positions, she worked in the areas of business law, civil litigation, consumer and business collections, real estate and elder law. Outside of the office, Katie enjoys watching her kids play ice hockey and spending time with her husband.
Mason Schultz joined Hale Skemp’s litigation team in 2018. Mason has a broad-based trial practice, representing plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal courts in matters including personal injury, business disputes, insurance defense, and employment law. He also assists clients in navigating administrative claims with the Department of Workforce Development and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Mason also advises businesses on personnel matters, including drafting of employee handbooks and employment agreements.
Employment Litigation
The employment law attorneys at Hale Skemp advise clients on the maze of state and federal laws affecting the workforce. We assist clients by drafting/reviewing employment severance agreements, employee handbooks, noncompete or confidentiality agreements. Our primary goal is to avoid litigation for our clients by use of proactive counseling. However, if legal disputes do arise, we have years of experience in handling employment issues either in court or administrative setting for...
Municipal bodies and school districts have unique needs in the legal arena. Public meetings, citizen complaints, the well-being of students, and a range of real estate matters are among the many issues addressed on a daily basis by cities, towns, villages, and school districts. The broad scope and varied nature of legal, regulatory, and compliance issues dealt with by such clients make it necessary to work with experienced and proven legal counsel. Moreover, legal issues faced by municipalities and school districts often end up in local newspaper reports or become topics of heated discussion among local citizens. As such, legal action must occur within the prism of public visibility. Due regard for the effect on public discourse is a necessary component of the decision-making process.
Premises Liability
Construction Litigation
Jim is noted to have the special expertise in insurance law and has handled a variety of complex insurance issues for both claimants and insurance companies. He also has substantial experience in handling fire claims and has represented clients in construction disputes. Jim is known for his skills in mediation and arbitration of disputes. He has acted as a neutral mediator in more than 600 civil cases and has achieved a high degree of success in assisting parties in resolving their disputes.
Real Estate Transactions
Bryant’s practice also involves representing clients in transactional matters such as estate planning, probate and trust administration, real estate transactions, and contractual matters.
Eminent Domain
We do more than handle simple residential and commercial purchases and sales. At Hale Skemp, you can retain a real estate lawyer with experience in zoning issues, environmental issues, condemnation and eminent domain issues, permit approvals, construction contracts, and title issues. Realtors, builders, developers and individuals turn to us for support when the situation demands steady, capable legal assistance.
Easement
Land Use and Zoning
Landlord-Tenant Disputes
Property Damage
The insurance defense attorneys at Hale Skemp are equipped to handle complex insurance cases involving novel questions, multiple parties, and complicated factual situations. The firm is adept at dealing with all types of insurance defense, including personal injury, property damage, products liability, professional malpractice, business loss, commercial interruption, advertising injury, and other forms of personal and business coverage.
Melissa Nelson was a paralegal at Hale Skemp from 1999-2012, and returned to the firm in 2019. She graduated from Northern State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice and she has a post-baccalaureate certificate from Minnesota Paralegal Institute. Melissa is a litigation paralegal, primarily working in plaintiff’s personal injury, insurance defense and workers’ compensation. Outside of the office, Melissa enjoys reading, traveling and spending time with her husband and four children.
Medical Malpractice
Our experienced professional malpractice lawyers will investigate an injury or loss to determine if malpractice has been committed. For medical malpractice, this often involves gathering medical records and having them reviewed by a specialist to find out if there was malpractice, or negligence, committed by the professional.
Auto Accidents
Social Security Disability
Another area of specialization is Social Security Disability cases. David has been successful for hundreds of claimants in Wisconsin and Minnesota. He also does mediation, having provided alternative dispute resolution services in civil litigation, farmer-creditor conflicts on a volunteer basis, and even disputes within law firms, drawing on management experience in his own firm.
Medicaid Planning
Our elder care attorneys are experienced in Medicaid planning to qualify for government assistance for nursing home care. We can help you avoid medical assistance liens or disqualification. Our experienced elder care attorneys can also help you create irrevocable trusts and provide other strategies to protect assets and avoid taxes to heirs.
Dog Bites
Acknowledged as an effective problem solver, Chuck‘s integrity and judgment are respected by people on both sides of an issue which makes him a valued mediator. His negotiation and litigation skills successfully serve clients injured in car and motorcycle accidents, dog bites, slips and falls, and many other injury-producing accidents. For people injured at work, Chuck brings recognized state-wide expertise in the area of Workers’ Compensation law essential to maximizing benefits for injured employees. As a founding board member and past-president of the Wisconsin Association of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, and after hundreds of successful hearings on behalf of injured workers, Chuck has an excellent working relationship with and the respect of the Administrative Law Judges who conduct Workers’ Compensation hearings.
Attorney Sarah Fortune counsels clients in estate planning and administration. “People often think of attorneys after a crisis, but what I like most about my work is that I help clients prevent family disputes and make gifts of a lifetime.” She crafts custom estate plans using wills, trusts, and other tools that allow her clients to manage their healthcare, finances, childcare, and gifting before and after death or disability.
Wills
In many ways, wills and trusts are not all that different. Both are legal documents that can be used to direct what happens to your money and property when you die. However, a trust can do much more than a will. For example, special needs trusts can be used to preserve money that will supplement the needs of a disabled family member without making that person ineligible for public benefits.
Trusts
Andrea has been a paralegal with Hale Skemp since 1995, specializing in the areas of real estate, probate, trust administration, and business. She graduated summa cum laude from Winona State University, Winona, Minnesota, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Paralegal/Multi-Legal Studies.
Power of Attorney
You may have heard of the terms “springing” and “non-springing” power of attorney and wonder what they mean.
Probate
Kevin retired from the private practice of law in December 2022. He joined Hale Skemp in 1994 and assisted clients in all matters of business law, contract, estate planning, probate law, real estate law, elder law, and intellectual property law.
Reached settlement for less than half of the amount sought, on behalf of the defendant, in a bankruptcy litigation case. The defendant was a small business being sued by a bankruptcy trustee to recover preferential transfer.
Foreclosure
If there is a need to enforce or to defend against enforcement of the terms of one of these contracts through a lawsuit seeking recovery of personal property, or foreclosure of real estate, or a suit for a money judgment, our team of experienced commercial litigation attorneys will competently represent you in this matter.