SMALL BUSINESS/SOLO PRACTICE FIRM – Matthew Gillhouse – MMG Law LLC

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Since 2013, MMG Law has grown from a one-person outfit to a nine-member team.

The Madison-based law firm is headed by Matthew Gillhouse, who — along with the rest of his team — provide bilingual services to clients in Wisconsin and other states.

Most of the firm’s clients are Spanish speakers, and they find comfort with the team when they realize that most of them are bilingual immigrants themselves.

“They can relate to our clients because many of the members of this team are hard immigrant workers with their own story to tell,” said Cecilia Gillhouse, Matthew’s wife and office manager for the firm.

The Gillhouses’ older son, Tomas, also works at the firm and serves as one the bilingual legal assistants.

The years of experience that Gillhouse and his team have working with victims and survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault allow him to work closely with advocates, shelter workers and social workers across the state.

MMG Law, the Women’s Center in Waukesha, YWCA of Rock County and a few other local shelters have coordinated regular free immigration law clinics in which Gillhouse assists victims in a safe environment. The firm also works with organizations and agencies to help victims receive legal funds.

Like most businesses, MMG Law had to shift the way it operates once the pandemic hit in early 2020.

“Thanks to all our connections and collaborations, even sending our team home for a while, the firm was able to continue its functioning without interrupting services,” said Cecilia Gillhouse.

“Only three months after the lockdown in March 2020 we were able to reorganize the system and adapt to the new reality.

“Our reality today is not very similar to the one before lockdown. We work with flexible schedules, hybrid hours and most of our work is virtual. Our team adapted and flourished to the new ‘us.’”