Banner year for MBA

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David A. Westrup of von Briesen & Roper, S.C. will be sworn in this week as the Milwaukee Bar Association’s first Hispanic president.

In 1998, attorney David A. Westrup was nearly a decade removed from the University of Michigan Law School and had accumulated 10 years of legal experience as an attorney in Ohio.

He also got married that year and he and his new bride were looking for a place to settle down.

Milwaukee was a city both had visited and enjoyed, so the move was solidified when von Briesen & Roper, S.C. hired Westrup.

“It worked out well because the firm was looking for an experienced lateral to come in and up until then I had done a lot of antitrust work,” said Westrup. “That’s what they were looking for so I came on board in 1999 and have been here ever since.”

Now, as the incoming Milwaukee Bar Association president, Westrup will try to parlay his passion for Milwaukee into an initiative to attract other out-of-state lawyers into the city.

He hopes to develop materials that would be distributed nationally to law school graduates and practitioners highlighting the benefits of coming to Milwaukee.

“People think of certain towns in the country and say, ‘This is where I should go,’ and people should think of Milwaukee like that and they don’t,” said Westrup whose wife, Amy, is director of marketing and communications at the MBA.

Westrup is especially hoping to lure more minority lawyers and business to the city, a product of his Hispanic heritage. In addition to being the first MBA president of Hispanic descent, Westrup served as president of the Wisconsin Hispanic Lawyers Association (WHLA) soon after coming to the state. He said there was not a lot he could do directly to lure the lawyers.

“But if I can increase the diversity of the bar so that there’s all types of minority lawyers here, then you might think over time different business will want to move here because they’ll feel comfortable,” said Westrup. “Over time, if this were to work, Milwaukee would be thought of as a destination spot for the best and brightest minority lawyers and I think it would just become the best and brightest lawyers.”

The plan may sound grand, but Westrup feels it fits with the MBA’s other significant undertaking — its 150th Anniversary.

Though the bulk of the celebration will take place in 2008, the formal kick-off will commence at the MBA annual meeting on June 12, which is when Westrup will be sworn in.

“It will be far bigger than me and something my predecessor, Judge (Michael) Skwierawski started,” said Westrup. “The celebration itself will focus on 2008, but take shape in the latter half of my year and straddle two presidencies.”

In addition to the celebratory hoopla that is sure to surround the anniversary, a more concrete example of the organization’s commitment to the community will be the Milwaukee Justice Center (see article this page).

“We won’t be focused on, ‘It’s been 150 years! Wow, we’re great!’” said Westrup. “We should be proud of the fact we’ve been around that long because we’ve done some great things, will continue to do great things and the justice center will be good for members as an opportunity, the to the extent they’re interested in access to justice issues, to give back to the community.”

As important as the preparation and execution of anniversary festivities are, Westrup noted that without a healthy bar, none of it would be possible. Fiscal organization and a cooperative work environment supersede any other annual objectives.

“I fully intend after my 12 months to be able say exactly where every penny that came in went,” said Westrup. “The day to day activities are less glamorous, but we want to make sure everyone is getting their money’s worth.”