(Main Office)

Our controlled and aggressive growth has resulted in a firm currently of over 20 lawyers with offices in Fort Wayne. The growth is a result of continued referrals from clients and attorneys who recognize the firm as being able to handle a myriad of legal problems promptly and efficiently. We pride ourselves on a reputation that has resulted in the addition of talented and seasoned lawyers to service our growing number of clients. The firm has a diverse practice and its members are widely recognized in their respective areas of specialization.

The firm also maintains one of the most technologically advanced offices in Indiana. There is a commitment to the use of computer and communications resources to best serve the increasingly complex needs of the firm's clients. This technological capability has enhanced the firm's reputation as an efficient and timely provider of legal services.

The firm's ability to respond to urgent and complex needs of referring attorneys continues to be one of its strong points and part of its vitality. We welcome challenges and can provide leadership or support at a reasonable cost under any circumstances.

Statement of Practice

Adoptions, Alternative Dispute Resolution, Americans with Disabilities Act, Appellate Practice, Bankruptcy, Breach of Contract, Business Formation, Business Law, Business Litigation, Business Planning, Buying and Selling of Businesses, Child Custody, Child Support, Citizenship, Civil Litigation, Civil Rights, Class Actions, Closely Held Business Law, Collections, Commercial Bankruptcy, Commercial Law, Commercial Leasing, Commercial Litigation, Commercial Real Estate, Complex Litigation, Condominium Law, Construction Defense, Construction Law, Consumer Law, Contracts, Copyrights, Corporate Law, Creditors Rights, Debtor and Creditor, Discrimination, Divorce, Education Law, Elder Law, Eminent Domain, Employee Benefits, Employment Contracts, Environmental Law, Estate Litigation, Estate Planning, Estate and Gift Taxation, Family Law, Family and Medical Leave Act, Finance, Financial Government Law, Foreclosures, Franchises and Franchising, General Practice, Green Cards, Guardianship and Conservatorship, Health Care, Homeowners Association Law, Immigration, Income Tax, Insurance, Insurance Bad Faith, Labor and Employment, Landlord and Tenant Law, Limited Liability Company Law, Litigation, Mediation, Mergers, Acquisitions and Divestitures, Mortgages, Nursing Home Litigation, Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA), Partnership Law, Personal Injury, Premarital Agreements, Privacy Law, Products Liability, Property Insurance, Real Estate, Residential Real Estate, School Law, Securities, Sexual Harassment, Small Business Law, Social Security, Social Security Disability, Spousal Support, Tax Audits, Tax Planning, Taxation, Trade Secrets, Trademarks, Trusts and Estates, Unfair Competition, Venture Capital, Visitation Rights, Wage and Hour Law, Warranty Law, Whistleblower Litigation, Wills and Probate, Workers Compensation, Wrongful Death, Zoning, Planning and Land Use, Alternative Action, Bankruptcy Chapter 11, Bankruptcy Chapter 13, Bankruptcy Chapter 7, Collaborative Family Law, Family Mediation, Fathers Rights.

Representative Clients:

Education: Fort Wayne Community Schools
Marion Community Schools
Taylor Community Schools. Finance: Farm Credit Services of Mid-America, ACA
Philips Electronics Federal Credit Union
Fifth Third Bank
Arlington Capital, LLC.
Citizens Financial Services. Insurance: Aetna Casualty & Surety Co.
Buckeye State Mutual Insurance Co.
Guaranty Mutual Life Co.
National Casualty Co. Manufacturing: CFM Majestic Corp.
Red Gold, Inc.
Carson Industries, LLC
Therma Tru Corporation
Best Lock Corporation a|b|a Best Access Systems
Kelly Box & Packaging Corporation
Valbruna Slater Stainless
Norwood Promotional Products
Paragon Medical, Inc. Health Care: Miller's Health System
QHG of Indiana, Inc., d/b/a Lutheran Hospital
Emergency Medicine of Indiana. Retail: National Oil & Gas, Inc. Real Estate Development: Ringenberger Development
RED Development. Transportation: Allied Worldwide, Inc.
Allied Van Lines, Inc.
North American Van Lines, Inc. Municipal: City of Fort Wayne
Hessen Utilities
Zionsville, Indiana Board of Zoning and Planning. Entrepreneurial: Northeast Indiana Innovation Center
Renaissance Investors, LLC
Ruffolo Benson, LLC Partners.

Rate Information

Fixed Hourly Rates
Fixed Fees Available

Address

200 East Main Street
Fort Wayne, IN 46802, (Allen Co.)

Phone

Phone: 260-422-0800
Facsimile: 260-420-1013

Website

http://www.beckmanlawson.com

Office Hours

Monday: 08:00 AM - 05:00 PM
Tuesday: 08:00 AM - 05:00 PM
Wednesday: 08:00 AM - 05:00 PM
Thursday: 08:00 AM - 05:00 PM
Friday: 08:00 AM - 05:00 PM

PARTNERS

Howard B. Sandler (Partner) admitted to bar, 1972, Indiana, U.S. District Court, Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana and U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit; 1987, U.S. Supreme Court. Education: Indiana University (B.S., Accounting, 1966; J.D., magna cum laude, 1972). Order of the Coif. Associate Editor, Indiana Law Journal. Certified Civil Mediator. Member: American Bankruptcy Institute (Certified in Business Bankruptcy Law); The Best Lawyers in America (2001—). [1st Lieut., U.S. Army, Finance Corps, 1966-1969]. Practice Areas: Business Law; Commercial Law; Mergers and Acquisitions; Litigation; Insolvency; Bankruptcy Law.Email: Howard B. Sandler

John H. Brandt (Partner) admitted to bar, 1978, Indiana. Education: Indiana University (B.S., 1971); University of Toledo (J.D., 1978). President, Metro Business Group (2000-2001). Allen County Court Appointed Special Advocate, 1986-2002. President, Fort Wayne Municipal Corporations (2000—). Board of Directors, 1999—, President, 2002-2004, Fort Wayne Museum of Art. Member: Allen County Bar Association (Past Chair, Family Law Section, 1995-1997); Indiana Association of Mediators (Judicial Nominating Commission, Allen Superior Court, 2000-2003). Practice Areas: Family Law; Mediation.Email: John H. Brandt

Robert L. Nicholson (Partner) admitted to bar, 1986, Texas; 1991, Indiana. Education: Baylor University (B.A., 1982); Texas Tech University (J.D., cum laude, 1986); Boston University (LL.M., 1990); Georgetown University (LL.M., Taxation, with distinction, 2000). Phi Kappa Phi. Order of the Coif. Note Editor, Texas Tech Law Review, 1985-1986. Practice Areas: Taxation; Commercial Law; Insolvency Law.Email: Robert L. Nicholson

Craig R. Patterson (Managing Partner) admitted to bar, 1992, Ohio, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio and U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit; 1994, Indiana, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Indiana and U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit; 1998, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Indiana. Education: Indiana University (B.A., 1988; J.D., cum laude, 1992). Member: Defense Trial Counsel of Indiana. Practice Areas: Employment Law Litigation; Civil Litigation; Insurance Defense.Email: Craig R. Patterson

Wendy W. Davis (Partner) admitted to bar, 1991, Texas; 1998, Indiana and U.S. District Court, Northern District of Indiana and U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio; U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas; U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit. Education: Wheaton College (B.A., 1988); Valparaiso University (J.D., 1991). Member: San Antonio and Indiana State Bar Associations; American Health Lawyers Association. Practice Areas: Labor Law; Employment Law; Federal Litigation; Corporate Defense; Civil Litigation; Health Law; Health Law Litigation.Email: Wendy W. Davis

Patrick R. Hess (Partner) admitted to bar, 1996, Indiana. Education: Indiana University (B.S., 1984); University of Cincinnati (J.D., 1996). Secretary, Land Use and Zoning Section, Indiana State Bar Association. Practice Areas: Zoning; Real Estate.Email: Patrick R. Hess

Mark E. Witmer (Partner) admitted to bar, 1992, Indiana and U.S. District Court, Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana. Education: Indiana University (B.A., cum laude, 1989; J.D., cum laude, 1992). Phi Beta Kappa. Associate: Miller, Carson, Boxberger & Murphy, Fort Wayne, IN, 1992-1994; North American Van Lines, Inc. (Associate Counsel, 1994-1997; Senior Counsel, 1997-2002). Practice Areas: Estate Planning; Bankruptcy; Construction Law; Transportation; Business Law.Email: Mark E. Witmer

Matthew J. Elliott (Partner) admitted to bar, 1998, Indiana; U.S. District Court, Northern District of Indiana; U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit. Education: University of Michigan (A.B., summa cum laude, 1992); Harvard University (J.D., magna cum laude, 1998). Law Clerk to the Hon. Jerome Farris, Ninth Circuit United States Court of Appeals, 1998-1999. Practice Areas: Litigation; Employment Law.Email: Matthew J. Elliott

Gary D. Johnson (Partner) admitted to bar, 1991, Indiana; U.S. District Court, Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana; U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit. Education: Indiana University (B.S., 1988; J.D., 1991). Member, 1989-1991 and Associate Editor, 1990-1991, Indiana Law Journal. Author: "Sexual Harassment in the Workplace," Business People Magazine, March 1992. Contributing Author: "Indiana Employment Law Handbook." Associate Professor, Personnel Law, Purdue University, 1996-1998. Practice Areas: Labor and Employment Law; Litigation.Email: Gary D. Johnson

ASSOCIATES

Adam Hand (Associate) born 1980; admitted to bar, 2005, Indiana. Education: Indiana University School of Law - Bloomington (J.D.). Member: Allen County and Indiana State Bar Associations. Practice Areas: Bankruptcy; Business Law; Commercial Law.

Brian C. Heck (Associate) admitted to bar, 1999, Minnesota; 2000, Indiana; 2001, Wisconsin. Education: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis (B.S., 1996); Indiana University School of Law - Bloomington (J.D., 1999). Practice Areas: Commercial Litigation; Business Litigation.Email: Brian C. Heck

Mark E. Bloom (Associate) admitted to bar, 2001, Indiana. Education: Purdue University (B.A., 1994); Indiana University School of Law (J.D., 2001). Practice Areas: Employment Law; Labor Law.Email: Mark E. Bloom

OF COUNSEL

William L. Sweet, Jr. (Of Counsel) admitted to bar, 1972, Indiana; 1996, Michigan. Education: Wabash College (A.B., 1969); University of Michigan (J.D., cum laude, 1972). Recipient, Prentice Hall Award, Federal Income Tax. Research Assistant, Wright & Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure. Director: Drug Emporium, Inc.; Buckeye State Mutual Insurance Company. Fellow: Indiana Bar Foundation; The Best Lawyers in America (2001—). Practice Areas: Labor Law; School Law; Commercial Litigation.Email: William L. Sweet, Jr.

Frederick A. Beckman (Of Counsel) admitted to bar, 1950, Indiana. Education: St. Joseph's College (A.B., cum laude, 1947); Indiana University (J.D., 1949). Sigma Delta Kappa. Deputy Prosecuting Attorney, Allen County, 1960-1963. Practice Areas: Estate Planning; Estate and Trust Administration; Civil Mediation.Email: Frederick A. Beckman

Jack W. Lawson (Of Counsel) admitted to bar, 1961, Indiana, U.S. District Court, Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana and U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit; 1970, U.S. Supreme Court. Education: Purdue University; Valparaiso University (B.A., 1958; J.D., 1961). Phi Alpha Delta. Guest Lecturer of Law, Valparaiso University, 1981—. Member: Allen County (Secretary, 1964-1966) and Indiana State (Seminar Chairman, Indiana Continuing Legal Education Forum, 1981—) Bar Associations; American College of Real Estate Lawyers; National Health Lawyers Association (Seminar Speaker, 1986—); The Best Lawyers in America (2001—). Practice Areas: Corporate and Securities Law; Real Estate Law; Planning and Zoning Law; Health Care Law; Environmental Law.Email: Jack W. Lawson