Honor, trustworthiness grandfathered in for Hughes

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Christopher Hughes recalls learning about the legal profession early on from his grandfather.

“I saw the positive impact he had on the community during his broad career as a district attorney, a city attorney and in private practice,” Hughes said. “It was interesting to see how much he enjoyed what he did.”

His grandfather inspired him to forge his own path toward changing things for the better.

“Some things like having honor and being trustworthy with clients is a baseline for all attorneys,” Hughes said. “I learned both of these from my grandfather.”

Hughes has served as managing partner at Stafford Rosenbaum since 2013, where he specializes in general municipal law, real estate matters and contract negotiation, preparation and review.

“Chris’ instincts are sound, and he is able to connect with everyone,” said Laura Skilton Verhoff, partner at Stafford Rosenbaum. “He has a wonderful ability to get to the heart of an issue quickly and resolve it with common sense, compassion and humor. These skills are apparent no matter where he is — in a client meeting, with his partners or at one of his many volunteer commitments.”

Outside his job, Hughes enjoys the outdoors with his family and volunteers for conservation organizations, including Gathering Waters Conservancy, a service center for Wisconsin’s land trust community.

He is also a former board member of the Natural Heritage Land Trust and a current member of that organization’s stewardship committee. The Natural Heritage Land trust protects natural areas, wildlife habitat, working farms, lakes, streams, and recreational land.

“Regardless of where an attorney is in their career, there is always something new to learn from other attorneys, clients, cases, legal and personal experiences,” Hughes said. “I think with every transaction and dealings I try to take something away that I can use in the future. As attorneys we never are done learning.”