Sarmiento a strong insurance policy

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Joseph Sarmiento is drawn to insurance litigation because of all the thinking it requires.

He enjoys parsing contracts to find ways to resolve disputes, he said, as well as discovering the place where a client’s desire for a lasting resolution intersects with the law.

Sarmiento, a 2007 graduate of DePaul University College of Law, first practiced insurance-coverage litigation at a Chicago law firm before moving to Milwaukee in 2014 to become an associate attorney at Milwaukee-based Meissner Tierney Fisher & Nichols. He has since expanded his practice to include employment-liability defense and general-defense litigation, both of which have him regularly planning for contingencies.

“You’ve got to think 10 steps down the road,” Sarmiento said.

He said he works hard to be as efficient as possible in fighting for his clients’ desired outcomes. Among the ways he pursues this goal is by conducting research, making thorough preparations and staying attuned to the main issues at hand. One of his recent cases involved compiling a chart showing that the state Supreme Court’s previously set definition of a particular pollutant had not set a precedent that was applicable to his client.

Sarmiento is willing to put in similar amounts of time and work for all those he represents.

“The main goal is to give them an honest evaluation of what they face as soon as possible,” Sarmiento said.

His analytical abilities are well known within the firm and have contributed to his involvement in various panel discussions and seminars. Those have often seen him sharing his expertise with fellow lawyers, most of whom practice in Wisconsin or Illinois.

Above all, Sarmiento said, he strives for honesty in all his dealings with clients, colleagues and other lawyers.

“People who have worked with me will know this is how I approach things, and I’m going to be fair, and we won’t spend time arguing over meaningless stuff,” he said.