Key Service Areas
- Dispute Resolution and Litigation Services
Legal Assistant - Kathy Haisma
Grand Rapids Location
55 Campau Avenue NW, Suite 300
Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503
Hastings Location
607 N. Broadway, Suite A
Hastings, MI 49058
Holland Location
11377 James Street
Holland, Michigan 49422
About Joel
How do you help businesses and individuals?
I bring 20+ years of complex trial and appellate litigation experience to the table from working in private practice in Washington, DC and then serving as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Western District of Michigan for over 15 years. I listen to my clients’ goals and then zealously represent their interests. I seek to ensure that the client’s goals are informed by the costs – money and otherwise – of what it can take to win a case.
What sets you apart from other lawyers in your practice field?
I know how to stand up and effectively advocate on a client’s behalf in the courtroom, honed through years of experience doing it. As a former federal prosecutor, I oversaw high-stakes fraud, money laundering, drug trafficking, and asset forfeiture investigations, first-chaired a significant number of jury trials, examined and cross-examined scores of witnesses, handled hundreds of contested evidentiary hearings, and briefed and argued dozens of appeals. Many civil cases sensibly settle before trial. But if trial makes sense, we will be prepared.
What did you learn in your first year of practice that you still utilize today?
One of the most valuable habits I developed early on was learning how to absorb and distill information. Litigation requires you to assess the facts and understand the client’s goals, soak in the relevant information, squeeze out what is irrelevant, improvise when necessary, adapt, and overcome.
Education
Georgetown University Law Center, J.D., 2005
Michigan State University (James Madison College & The Honors College), B.A. With High Honors, 1997
