C. Erik Chickedantz

Attorney Sam Talarico, Jr., has nearly thirty years of experience representing corporate clients, with an emphasis on mergers & acquisitions, corporate governance, and private placements. He regularly represents clients who are buying and selling businesses involving both strategic and private equity parties, including numerous transactions within the insurance and financial services space as well as the manufacturing space. He has assisted public companies with the preparation of 10-Ks, ...

Pat Murphy has spent his career in litigation. He is an experienced trial attorney whose practice is focused on representing businesses in commercial, business and intellectual property litigation. His diverse experience includes handling matters involving contract disputes, non-competition and non-compete agreements, non-solicitation agreements, real estate, adverse possession, easements, boundary disputes, property law, construction, intellectual property disputes, trademark and copyright i...

Randy Brown is a first-chair trial attorney involved in complex commercial litigation. For nearly three decades, Randy has defended major class actions, tried dozens of cases throughout the country, and acted as lead counsel in multiple appeals in Indiana and before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Randy is chair of the firm's Litigation Department and managing partner of the firm’s Fort Wayne office. Listed among The Best Lawyers in America in multiple litigation disc...

Alex Platte is a Fort Wayne native who has dedicated himself to serve the needs of businesses and individuals across northeast Indiana. His practice primarily focuses on business transactions, commercial lending and banking, corporate structuring, and succession planning. Alex is often called upon to sort through complex and technical issues, and his goal is always to bring certainty and clarity to each client and situation. Alex graduated from South Side High School in Fort Wayne, then earne...

James O’Connor’s employment law practice involves consulting with clients on compliance matters and advocating on behalf of clients in litigation matters. He has extensive experience with asserting and defending insurance-related claims and coached clients through cybersecurity/data breach events. In the Name Image and Likeness space, he has documented marketing agreements for Student Athletes and drafted NIL policies for universities. He has been a registered civil mediator for m...

Focusing on appellate practice and complex business litigation, Cathleen Shrader has extensive experience in civil litigation. She is experienced in representing clients at all levels of the appellate process; at representing businesses in contract, warranty, intellectual property, and other disputes; and at representing trustees, beneficiaries, and personal representatives in complex estate and trust disputes. Cathleen has been listed in the Best Lawyers in America® publication for Appel...

Tom Niezer has over 30 years of experience in real estate law and land use law. He regularly works with regional economic development corporations and helps businesses negotiate and secure local and state public benefit subsidy award. He has represented non-profit development organizations who partner with local development agencies and the Indiana Economic Development Corporation for purposes of targeted redevelopment initiatives or the establishment of new manufacturing or other facilities ...

Attorney Anthony Stites represents business entities in all facets of their employment matters. On a daily basis, he works with human resource personnel and in-house counsel to prevent or solve problems in the employment arena. Clients that he works regularly include Ashley Industrial Molding, New Millennium Building Systems, Micropulse, Steel Dynamics Inc., OmniSource Corp., and Colwell General Inc. With an emphasis in the transportation and manufacturing sectors, Anthony has presented hundr...

Mark Bains represents clients in a variety of real estate matters including acquisitions and dispositions, leasing, and zoning and land use matters. In addition, Mark focuses his practice on various types of real estate litigation, including disputes related to purchase agreements, lease agreements, and eminent domain actions. Mark also handles construction law matters, where he represents residential and commercial contractors in the process of negotiating and drafting construction contracts...

Michael O'Hara focuses his practice in the areas of corporate law, business transactions, mergers and acquisitions, finance, and creditors' rights. He is counsel for Do it Best Corp. and for numerous closely held corporations and several financial institutions. An AV® Preeminent™ rated attorney based on Martindale-Hubbell's peer review ratings, he has been selected for inclusion since 2016 in The Best Lawyers® in America publication. Michael is involved in many professional asso...