Top best E Lawyers in ZIP 46617 | 43 available

Victoria is committed to bringing you the legal solutions that meet your specific needs and with the highest level of service in this area.  Your attorney will respond to you and be your source of information to help you plan, prevent and solve your individual and business legal needs.

The Law Offices of Donald J. Schmid practices in the areas of federal and state criminal law, complex civil litigation, internal investigations, and regulatory compliance. When there is a lot on the line, and your liberty or the very survival of your business is at risk, high-level prior experience is crucial. Tenacious advocacy is required.. With over 30 years litigation experience and more than 21 years as a federal prosecutor, attorney Donald J. Schmid will provide you with strategic case evaluation and fearless advocacy. Your rights as an individual or as a business will be protected and vindicated. Mr. Schmid knows how to win in court, and has done so in more than 75 jury trials.. Additionally, with respect to sensitive internal investigations, Mr. Schmid's careful discretion, integrity, and judgment will ensure that the matter is thoroughly examined and evaluated. You can count on it.. Donald J. Schmid is a former Assistant U.S. Attorney and practices in the areas of criminal defense, civil litigation, internal investigations, and regulatory compliance. He served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice in the Northern District of Indiana for more than 21 years from 1994 to May 2016. As an award-winning federal prosecutor, he won more than 75 jury trials in the United States District Court. He was Chief of the South Bend Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office from 2002 to 2004.. Prior to becoming an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Mr. Schmid was a successful civil trial and appellate lawyer with Gibson Dunn & Crutcher in Los Angeles, California. He litigated in numerous areas of law including securities fraud, trademark and intellectual property, banking, antitrust, legal ethics, and employment. Among his clients were the British Broadcasting Co., Grove Worldwide Inc., and PaineWebber. He is also experienced in alternative dispute resolution including mediation and arbitration.. As a federal prosecutor, Mr. Schmid led complex investigations and prosecutions in the areas of public corruption, white collar fraud including healthcare fraud, organized and violent crime, environmental crime, and illegal drug trafficking/money laundering. He won numerous awards from the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, DEA, the Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, the U.S. Department of Justice, and many other government agencies. Mr. Schmid was widely known for his consummate skill as an oral and written advocate.. Mr. Schmid has served as an adjunct professor of law at the University of Notre Dame Law School where he taught a class in criminal justice policy and restorative justice. He currently lectures in the Notre Dame Business School in the areas of white collar crime, health care law, and regulatory compliance. He is a recognized expert in criminal law and procedure, the U.S. sentencing laws, restorative justice, and legal ethics.. Mr. Schmid is a member of the Indiana and California Bars.. Mr. Schmid was appointed to and served on COPRAC, the State Bar of California’s Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct, which is responsible for issuing opinions on legal ethics. He also served as a Professional Responsibility Officer for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.. In 2001, Mr. Schmid won the prestigious Ian Axford Fellowship in Public Policy. With that fellowship, he traveled throughout New Zealand speaking and writing. He was part of a special task force on criminal law and restorative justice headed by the Chief Judge of the New Zealand District Court. He appeared on radio and TV in New Zealand. When he returned to the U.S., he helped to establish a restorative justice program for juveniles in St. Joseph County, Indiana.. Mr. Schmid graduated summa cum laude from the University of Notre Dame in 1982 with a bachelor’s degree in economics and philosophy. He graduated magna cum laude with his law degree (J.D.) from the University of Michigan Law School in 1985 and was awarded the honor of Order of the Coif.. As an undergraduate, Mr. Schmid was awarded a Mellon Undergraduate Research Fellowship and studied at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine – Law and Psychiatry. There he designed his own research study into patient confidentiality/privacy and was the lead author of “Confidentiality in Psychiatry: A Study of the Patient’s View,” published in the Journal of Hospital and Community Psychiatry. Mr. Schmid has also published papers regarding restorative justice policy, criminal justice policy, and alternative dispute resolution.

Natalie J. Boocher is an Attorney with the Schwarz Law Office, PC.  She is a native of South Bend, but chose Arizona as the place to attend college and law school. She is now licensed in both Indiana and Arizona. She focuses her practice on all aspects of long-term care planning, including Medicaid, incapacity issues, special needs planning, wills, living trusts, durable powers of attorney, health care decision making, and nursing home issues. Natalie regularly assists individuals and their families in both planning for and filing Medicaid applications with the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration. Her goal is to make every family’s experience with the Medicaid system less stressful so their focus can be fully on taking care of their loved one.

Mark combines his legal experience with an interesting and unique background,
having previously worked as a high school economics teacher; earned the rank of
Shodan (black belt) in Tai Jutsu, a traditional Japanese martial art; and, after
years of working in restaurants, became an accomplished cook.

Jennifer is certified as an Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation and is accredited by the Veteran’s Administration to practice before the VA. Jennifer is a member of the Elder Law sections of both the Indiana and Michigan state bars, and is a past chairperson of the Indiana Elder Law section and current member of the Board of Directors of National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA).. As an Elder Law attorney for Tuesley Hall Konopa, Jennifer counsels clients in the areas of elder law, estate planning & administration, estate taxation, gifting, special needs, trusts, guardianships, veteran’s benefits, Medicaid benefits, and probate.

I have lived and practiced law in St. Joseph County for 40 years.  My goal has been to provide quality legal services to "regular folks" with an affordable fee structure often including instalment payments.  I married a native South Bender and have raised two marvelous children, one of whom has blessed me with a grandchild.. I have served on several community boards and volunteered for civic, political and charitable organizations.  My favorite hobby is singing--for churches and synagogues, the South Bend Chamber Singers, and other local groups.

I grew up in Osceola, Indiana and graduated from Penn High School; after graduation I attended Purdue University double majoring in Criminal Justice and Psychology and received a minor in Forensic Science. While at Purdue, I was a member of the Forensics Club, the Psychology Club, and member of Theta Chi Fraternity.. After graduating from Purdue, I attended Michigan State University College of Law. During law school, I was a member of the Michigan State wrestling club and a frequent volunteer at the Boys and Girls Club of America.. I began working at Sweeney Julian as an intern and quickly discovered how rewarding it was to help my injured clients recover after an auto crash or other incident. I do my very best to give each client the individual attention they deserve as I know that each person is different, with different needs, and differernt goals. Lawsuits are a confusing and often times frustrating process, but I work with my clients every step of the way to make it as straightforward of a process as I can explaining each step in plain Engligh and leaving the legal jargon to the law books.. Outside of work, I can be found spending time with my family and friends, camping, hiking, backpacking, or any othe routdoor activity. When I am not spending time with my family, I volunteer as a wrestling coach for the Penn Wrestling Club. I am currently members of the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association, the American Association for Justice, and the American Inn of Courts.

I am dedicated to providing the best legal services to my clients.  I will provide hard work, diligent representation, and sound counsel.  What follows are a number of quotes from various clients, another lawyer, and judges concerning my work:. "innovative and unorthodox" -- opposing counsel. "best attorney I ever had" -- client. "couldn't have won with anyone else fighting for me" -- client. "exhibits the highest ethical and moral qualities" -- judge. "hardest working, friendliest, and results getting lawyer I know" -- client. "always prepared" -- judge

Frank Julian has known for a long time that he wanted to earn his living in the courtroom as a trial attorney. However, he did not take the normal path from school towards the leadership of a major law firm. Before law school, Frank followed another calling by serving his country in the United States Navy. In making your choice of a personal injury law firm, we think it is important to know the lawyer and his or her history.. Frank comes from a Navy family. Frank’s father (Frank Sr.) was a naval officer who served for over 35 years commanding several ships and retiring as a Captain. In fact, Frank was born while his father was serving in Vietnam as the Commanding Officer of the USS ASHEVILLE (PG-84). While growing up, Frank’s family lived all over the country, wherever his father’s duty assignments took them. Frank’s mother is a nurse with a specialty in geriatric care. Frank’s mother was the Director of Nursing at several nursing homes over the course of her career.. As early as the eighth grade, Frank knew that he wanted to be a lawyer. That year, his social studies class was studying World War II and the difficult decision to use nuclear weapons to end the war. The class was given the difficult assignment of a “war crimes” trial. Harry Truman stood accused of war crimes for his decision to use the atomic bomb at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Surprisingly, Truman had been consistently found guilty in the prior years of mock trials. Frank was given the assignment of lead counsel defending Truman. This was the early eighties, the height of the cold war and the anti-nuclear movement. The five day trial was headline news throughout New England. In the end, Harry Truman was resoundingly acquitted by the jury. Frank Julian had won his first trial and had found a vocation. Frank knew that one day he wanted to be in the courtroom, fighting against the odds.. After high school, Frank took a Naval ROTC scholarship at Villanova University in Pennsylvania. At Villanova, Frank majored in Political Science with a concentration in Arab & Islamic Studies.  Instead of immediately going to graduate school or law school like most of his classmates, Frank joined the United States Navy. It turned out that Arabic studies would serve him well because soon after graduation Frank found himself in the Middle East in support of Operation Desert Storm. Frank was assigned to the USS KALAMAZOO (AOR-6) as part of the John F. Kennedy Battle Group and later the George Washington Battle Group.. The KALAMAZOO was an extremely large ship (40,000 tons, 659 feet long, 96 foot beam, 32,000 shaft horsepower) that was designed for the replenishment at sea of a Navy battle group. Replenishment operations often required that the KALAMAZOO be operated within yards of an aircraft carrier, sometimes with another large ship on the other side and often in high seas.. Even as a 22-year-old ensign, Frank reveled in this type of high-stakes, high pressure assignment. He was quickly qualified as a Surface Warfare Officer. He also enjoyed working with the giant steam boilers that drove the ship. Although now made almost extinct by high-tech gas turbine propulsion, operating the ship’s complex steam system appealed to Frank. Although not required by his assignment, he obtained the qualification of Engineering Officer of the Watch.. While in the pressure-cooker environment of the Persian Gulf during Desert Storm, Frank qualified as one of the ship’s two Tactical Action Officers. In that role, Frank was charged with the operation of the ship’s multiple radars, electronic warfare equipment, and the ship’s missile system. Had the ship been attacked, it would have been his responsibility to defend the 500 person crew.. After serving on the KALAMAZOO, Frank was honored by being one of a select few officers chosen to serve on the pre-commissioning crew of the USS STETHEM (DDG-63). STETHEM is a special ship. It was named for Robert Dean Stethem, a United States Naval Petty Officer who was brutally murdered by terrorists in 1985. In June of 1985, Robert Stethem was on his way home after having completed an overseas assignment for the Navy. As he flew home on TWA Flight 847, Shi’ite terrorists took over the plane. After they discovered that Robert was an American and in the U.S. Navy, he was singled out and then brutally beaten and tortured. Despite being beaten for several hours, Robert Stethem did not waiver or yield. The cowardly terrorists eventually became so enraged that they killed him and threw his body onto the tarmac of the airport in Beirut, Lebanon. Robert Stethem was awarded the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star for heroism and bravery. The Navy would later honor Robert Stethem by naming its newest and most technologically advanced warships in his honor.. Frank joined the crew of the STETHEM while it was still being built in the shipyard at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi. After the shipyard, the ship traveled through the Panama Canal and then up to its home port of San Diego California. STETHEM was commissioned in California with most of the members of the Stethem family in attendance. During the commissioning ceremony, then LT. Julian had the honor of being the ship’s first Officer of the Deck. After commissioning, STETHEM took part in several shakedown cruises and an extensive missile testing program at the Pacific Missile Test Range off the coast of Hawaii.. At the end of his tour on STETHEM, Frank had a tough decision to make. He had to choose between a naval career and his long-held desire to become a trial lawyer. Having been around the world and having done everything he wanted to in the Navy, Frank decided to leave the Navy and go to law school. During his time in the Navy, Frank received several commendations and medals. Awards and Commendations included the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal and Navy Achievement Medal, the Battle ‘E” Award, National Defense Service Medal, Southwest Asia Service Medal, and the Sea Service Ribbon. After looking at law schools around the country, Frank decided that the University of Notre Dame was the best fit for him. He packed up a truck and drove from San Diego to South Bend, Indiana.. Forming the Sweeney Julian Team. Fresh out of law school, Frank went to work both on his own and with other personal injury lawyers. In 2000, he was approached by Charles Sweeney with an idea of opening a new branch of his personal injury law firm in South Bend. Charlie had practiced in South Bend for 30+ years, but at the time only had an office in Fort Wayne. The South Bend office of Sweeney Law Firm opened in 2001 with Frank Julian and Charles Sweeney working together on their client’s behalf.. In 2005, Charles Sweeney decided to retire and become “of counsel” to the law firm. An attorney who is “of counsel” acts as an advisor and is available for consultation and assistance whenever needed. Frank Julian took over the practice, the name of which changed from Sweeney Law Firm to Sweeney Julian PC.. At its core, Sweeney Julian’s role is to help our community both through dedicated legal work and through community service. Helping our fellow man is always profitable, both personally and for the bottom line. We regularly use our firms considerable resources to help out local charities and people in need. Frank Julian is also on the Board of Directors of the Granger Rotary Club.. Early in his career, Frank was elected to the Board of Directors of the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association, a highly coveted honor. Through the ITLA, Frank promotes legislation to protect the rights of Hoosiers. In 2005, Frank was nominated as the Indiana Trial Lawyer of the Year.  In 2019 Frank was elected President of the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association, having served on that organization's Board of Directors and Executive Committee for over ten years.. A frequent participant on the faculty of continuing legal education seminars, Frank has given many lectures on a variety of subjects. Some of those subjects include The Use of Expert Testimony is Spine Injury Cases, Handling Residential Gas Explosions and Attorney Advertising in the Age of Insurance Company Propaganda.  Frankis the President of the Annual Litigation Seminar for Northern Indiana. Topics of the seminar have included: Automobile Litigation, Topics in Litigation and Damages in Automobile Litigation.  Frank recently was Chair of the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association Lifetime Achievement Seminar and several other seminars dealing with cutting edge issues in litigation.  He has served as the Chair of the Annual Institute,  one of the largest and most prestigious continuing legal education events in Indiana.

A partner at Foley & Small, Douglas D. Small focuses his practice primarily on personal injury and wrongful death litigation. Working out of the firm's office in South Bend, Indiana, he has represented clients throughout the state as well as in other parts of the country. Admitted to practice in Indiana since 1983, Mr. Small is also admitted to practice before several federal trial and appellate courts, including the U.S. District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana, the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 5th, 6th, 7th, and District of Columbia Circuits, and the Supreme Court of the United States.. In his personal injury practice, Mr. Small provides representation to people who have incurred economic and noneconomic losses due to the negligence of other parties. The types of cases that he has handled have included truck and other motor vehicle crashes, premises liability, and defective drugs and medical products. During his career, Mr. Small has been able to obtain significant compensation for his clients, through both jury awards and negotiated settlements, and this has led to his becoming a member of the invitation-only Million Dollar Advocates Forum.. Mr. Small's experience also encompasses bad faith and other insurance coverage disputes, and he has worked on several other types of civil litigation as well. His successful track record in all of these endeavors, as well as his superb ethics, has earned him a great deal of recognition from his colleagues, including an AV Preeminent* peer review rating through Martindale-Hubbell.. In addition, Mr. Small has been named to The National Trial Lawyers: Top 100 Trial Lawyers in Indiana.. Mr. Small has also been named as a "Super Lawyer" in the State of Indiana in 2019, 2020 and 2021.. He attended what was then known as the Indiana University Bloomington School of Law and was awarded his Juris Doctor cum laude in 1980. He was a member of IU's National Moat Court team.. *AV®, AV Preeminent®, Martindale-Hubbell Distinguished and Martindale-Hubbell Notable are certification marks used under license in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell® is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Rating™ fall into two categories – legal ability and general ethical standards.

Experienced E attorney serving clients in South Bend and surrounding areas.

Experienced E attorney serving clients in South Bend and surrounding areas.