Indian Law practitioner touts niche work

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Milwaukee attorney Paul Stenzel said he knew early in his legal career that a traditional practice wasn’t going to be for him.

So after his first year at the University of Wisconsin Law School, he spent the summer interning with the Oneida Indian Tribe of Wisconsin. The experience taught Stenzel, now 43, about the tribal court system and drew him into the sovereign state culture.

Seventeen years later, 90 percent of the sole practitioner’s work is Indian Law.

“I really like being in more of a niche,” Stenzel said. “Run of the mill stuff, I would find that particularly challenging to make it fresh. I get to be a little unique and I like that.”

After graduating in 1995, Stenzel spent eight years as in-house counsel for the Stockbridge-Munsee Community Indian Tribe in Bowler before working two years with the Milwaukee office of von Briesen & Roper SC.

He opened his own Milwaukee practice in 2005 and in recent years has helped tribes transition cases traditionally handled in state court, in areas such as divorce and child support, to tribal courts.

Given the ongoing evolution of the tribal court system and the unique cultural elements of working on reservations, Stenzel said the practice is never dull.

He took time this week to reflect on his chosen career path in this week’s Asked & Answered.

Wisconsin Law Journal: If you could develop one CLE course for credit, what would it be about?
Paul Stenzel: I really enjoy the rest of the story when it comes to high profile U.S. Supreme Court cases. If I had the time, I’d love to pick 10 or 12 Supreme Court cases and research what happened to the parties after the court ruled. I think the stories would be interesting and would illustrate different aspects of the consequences of litigation.

WLJ: What was your least favorite course in law school and why?
Stenzel: Probably Civil Procedure I during my first year. At that time I didn’t fully appreciate what the rules were trying to do and I found it a bit tedious.

WLJ: What do you consider your biggest achievement to date and why?
Stenzel: There are so many ways to answer that question. I have a loving and fulfilling family life, I’ve run a marathon and I’ve sustained my own law practice as a solo for nearly seven years.

WLJ: What is the one luxury item you cannot live without?
Stenzel: Chocolate

WLJ: What do you miss most about your childhood?
Stenzel: The whimsy and the frivolity of certain things you can decide to do, that I would never do now. We look on it now as adults as craziness. When I was about 18, we lived in Chicago and my friend had a girl who lived in Philadelphia. We decided to take my 25-year-old Volkswagen Beetle and drive it there for a three-day weekend. It was like 18 hours each way, so we were only there a short time. But it was great.

WLJ: What is one thing attorneys should know that they won’t learn in law school?
Stenzel: Because of technology and changing views about work, there is a large amount of room for creativity and originality in how you shape your career and how you use your degree.

WLJ: What is the first concert you went to?
Stenzel: The first one I really remember was going to R.E.M. in 1989 at the Rosemont Horizon outside of Chicago.

WLJ: If you could trade places with someone for a day, who would it be and why?
Stenzel: Probably an Olympic runner like Michael Johnson or Ryan Hall. I’ve been a runner all my life and would love to experience what it’s like to run at an elite level, if just for a day.

WLJ: What is your motto?
Stenzel: Live and learn.

WLJ: If you could be a superhero, who would it be and why?
Stenzel: I think Batman. He was the first one I watched when I was a kid. I kind of like the movies and that he has kind of a dark side.

WLJ: If you hadn’t become a lawyer, what career would you have chosen?
Stenzel: My answer to this has varied over the years. I’ve always thought being a veterinarian would be fun and rewarding, but more likely I would choose to be a counselor or therapist.