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“Brian is a thought leader on all matters energy, particularly regarding disputes and litigation. He is a go-to for large and small sector businesses and continues to deliver.”

Chambers USA 2023

Overview

A business leader and commercial litigator with a strong background in environmental and energy law, Brian loves connecting people.

Brian primarily focuses his practice on complex commercial litigation matters, representing clients in a wide variety of business disputes, from bank fraud to energy and environmental litigation to breach of contract to First Amendment cases. With a talent for project and case management, Brian excels at developing strategies and shepherding clients through the litigation process in an efficient and effective manner. In addition to his litigation work, he advises clients on compliance with the Clean Air Act and represents organizations in government enforcement matters. Brian also assists utility companies with energy regulatory matters.

What Brian is best known for, however, is being a mentor and a connector. He serves as a resource to anyone he can help in any way. He loves connecting clients and potential clients with investors and likely business partners (as well as other lawyers), and as the founder and board chair of The Legal Mentor Network, he’s passionate about fostering connections across the legal industry as a whole.

As a law student, Brian was rejected by each of the top 100 law firms in the U.S.—including the one where he made equity partner less than a decade later. After posting about this experience on LinkedIn in 2020, he found himself inundated with requests for mentorship. Over the next few months, he built a nationwide network of attorneys willing to mentor law students and recent J.D. grads—which formed the beginning of the now-nationwide Legal Mentor Network. Brian has since connected thousands of mentors and protégés through the program, personally mentored more than 1,000 individuals, and helped thousands of others obtain mentorship.

Alongside his love of mentoring, Brian is also enthusiastic about working with startups. He regularly meets with startup founders and assists them in connecting with investors and potential attorneys. An entrepreneur himself, Brian has founded startups of his own, including a company that has raised over $4 million in outside capital. He understands the process of owning and growing a business, and he understands what clients’ businesses mean to them.

Brian is known for his authenticity with clients and his eagerness to serve not only as an attorney, but as a business connector.

“Brian is a thought leader on all matters energy, particularly regarding disputes and litigation. He is a go-to for large and small sector businesses and continues to deliver.”

Chambers USA 2023

Industry

Services

Recognition

  • Chambers USA, Natural Resources & Environment, 2013-2024
  • The Best Lawyers in America®
    • Best Lawyers® Energy Regulatory Law "Lawyer of the Year," Madison, 2025
    • Energy Regulatory Law, 2013-2023, 2025
    • Environmental Law, 2025
  • Wisconsin Super Lawyers, Environment, 2013-2023

Education

  • LL.M., University of California, Berkeley School of Law
  • J.D., Vermont Law School
    • cum laude
  • B.S., Centre College

Admissions

  • Wisconsin
  • Kentucky
  • District of Columbia
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Wisconsin
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit
  • U.S. Supreme Court

Professional Memberships and Certifications

  • Wisconsin Bar Association, Energy Chapter Board
  • American Bar Association
Outside the Office

Brian enjoys hiking, prairie restoration, and ping pong. He regularly attends concerts and other live music events and likes to play the guitar, although he notes he’s not particularly good at it.

Community Leadership

Brian has written more than 100 op-eds for major publications, including in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fortune, and Politico. He is also the founder and board chair of The Legal Mentor Network, a nationwide organization that connects law students and young lawyers with seasoned attorneys in their field. Thousands of young people have gone through the program, with Brian personally mentoring 1,000 individuals in the past three years.