Marna M. Tess-Mattner

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Many students, at one point or another, work in the food service industry while pursuing their degrees.

Attorney Marna M. Tess-Mattner did. That experience made her successful defense of her client, a restaurateur in a breach-of-employment contract case, an even sweeter victory for her.

The federal court case required Tess-Mattner to meet a number of intelligent and hard-working employees and former employees of the workplace in question, who served as witnesses. Most were young and had been treated extremely poorly by their former manager, the plaintiff, and many of whom were intimidated by the legal process. Yet, they rose to the occasion, and their testimony was critical to her client prevailing.

Sometimes it’s not about the money; it’s about vindication.

“They were such great people to work with. They were so sincere, so caring about the restaurant, and so glad to be done with him. They really had a tight bond, and it just shone through on the witness stand,” she says. “It was a joy to work with them, and the good outcome helped, too.”

Tess-Mattner, of Bridgen and Petajan, S.C. in Milwaukee, was told that “girls” couldn’t go into law by her high school guidance counselor. She opted for social work instead, and, post-college, found herself in corrections. The job took her to court frequently. That’s when Tess-Mattner decided the guidance counselor was wrong.

Her husband, Kent Tess-Mattner, was in law school at the time, so she started the fall after his graduation.

“We did the six-year plan, which I don’t recommend from either a social or financial standpoint,” she laughs.

“But we decided if we could make it through six years of law school, we could do anything.”

Afterward, she worked for several years at the predecessor firm to Gimbel, Reilly, Guerin & Brown S.C. in Milwaukee, until she decided she wanted to concentrate solely in employment law. In 1993, she made the move to her current firm, where she exclusively represents employers.

Tess-Mattner is a litigator, but her principal focus is counseling clients. “I really believe in the State Bar’s slogan, ‘Expert Advisors. Serving You.’ I don’t think it’s a good role for lawyers to be constantly rushing to the courthouse to battle things out. But rather, at least for my role, I think I provide a better service to my clients if I can help them before they make decisions or policies, in an effort to avoid legal entanglements.”

She has a nationwide client base, many of whom she never has actually seen face-to-face. She views that as a positive — the face time would probably happen only if litigation were required.

While Tess-Mattner certainly is an able performer in the courtroom, she prefers to utilize her vocal talents, rather than her litigation skills. She is a longtime member of the Master Singers of Milwaukee, which performed last fall at a sold-out concert at Milwaukee’s Pabst Theater entitled, “Enter the Heroes,” a tribute to the military.