Recent Articles from Melody Finnemore
Abston creating a true melting pot
Ian Abston often meets older business leaders and Millennial employees and hears concerns about who will lead Wisconsin into the future. The older leaders ask who the next generation of leaders will be, and the younger ones question when it will be their turn.
Law firm’s diverse roots run deep
Michael Hupy regularly shares messages about his law firm’s history, including a message that highlights the attorney Lloyd Barbee, who started the Milwaukee Public Schools integration lawsuit.
Thomas-Conners keeps CH Coakley on the move
A self-described “customer service girl at heart,” Lazelle Thomas-Conners quickly rose through the ranks at CH Coakley after joining the company as a temporary receptionist and accounts-payable clerk seven years ago.
Zelenovskiy finds home in US, legal field
Katya Zelenovskiy immigrated from Belarus to the United States with her sister when she was 18, and although she had long wanted to be an attorney, didn’t feel her English was strong enough.
Nelson has no second thoughts about second career
The law is a second career for Kristen Nelson, who had thought in high school and college about becoming a lawyer before going on to work for several years in the fashion industry. She said it was fun but she began to want a career that was more intellectually challenging.
Clients put their trust in Arends’ antitrust work
Wendy Arends recalls early indications of wanting to become an attorney. As a child, she sat at a little desk, answering her pretend phone and counseling make-believe clients.
Helping people job No. 1 for Fields
When asked what made her want to become an attorney, Heather Fields cannot recall a time when she didn’t want to be one.
Clients, colleagues sing Bialzik’s praises
With a father who was an attorney, Melinda Bialzik swore she would never be one and would instead pursue acting. As she studied anthropology during college, however, she learned about different people’s perspectives and law school began to look more interesting.
Stokke-Ceci has ‘Meter-oric’ rise into legal field
Pam Stokke-Ceci had worked for Badger Meter for 21 years when “intellectual curiosity and straight-up serendipity” carried her to law school in 2008.
Dettmann a ‘rare talent’
Cathleen Dettmann has long had an interest in law, politics and debating issues, an interest that her father encouraged her to explore when she was a child.
Gage-Michaels spends career advocating for the vulnerable
Andrea Gage-Michaels began her career in television journalism, public relations and advocacy. As a reporter, she often suggested that her interviewees consult with an attorney if they were in a legal predicament. She said her reporting and advocacy experience helped develop the investigational skills she needed to become a lawyer.
Finerty has strong problem-solving lineage
John Finerty Jr. was inspired to become an attorney by his father, who founded the firm Friebert, Finerty & St. John more than 40 years ago.
Legal News
- Outside the RNC, small Milwaukee businesses and their regulars tried to salvage a sluggish week
- Biden called to resign immediately after the president announces he won’t seek reelection
- Biden drops out of 2024 presidential race, endorses Harris
- Local PA cops allegedly thought Trump’s would-be assassin was Secret Service
- Biden-Lead Secret Service admits agency denied past requests by Trump’s campaign for tighter security
- Class action filed against Walgreens
- Former Waukesha County Sheriff’s Office lieutenant pleads guilty to smuggling contraband
- Two dead, one injured after Ozaukee County water rescue
- RNC Final Day: Trump accepts GOP Nomination
- Wisconsin officials intervene in Planned Parenthood action
- 7th Circuit adopts modifications to Rules 31, 34, 40, 47 and 60
- MPD issues statement on outside agency officer assignments
Case Digests
- Ineffective Assistance of Counsel; Double Jeopardy; Sentencing
- Ineffective Assistance of Counsel; Sexual Assault-Prosecutorial Misconduct
- Contract-Negligence
- Criminal Law; Juvenile Law; Discovery
- Family Law; Child Support; Property Division First paragraph(s)
- Ineffective Assistance of Counsel- Exclusion of Evidence of Witness Bias
- Postconviction Relief-Sentencing-Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
- 14th Amendment – Due Process
- Criminal-Sentencing Guidelines – Enhancement
- Bankruptcy-Tax
- Civil Rights – 14th Amendment-Jury Instructions
- Contract; Foreclosure and Property