Mike Wiltse
State Bar of Wisconsin
September 18, 2026
A lawyer comes home to Waupun office
WAUPUN — For years, Dempsey Law Firm’s Waupun office had an address, clients and a need.
What it did not have was a full-time attorney.
Now it does.
Adam Weber, who grew up near Markesan, began work in the Waupun office June 1 after graduating cum laude from the University of Wisconsin Law School in May and being admitted to practice in Wisconsin on May 28.
His arrival fills a vacancy the firm had been trying to fill for years.
“We have been striving for years to get someone in our Waupun office and, to date, have had no success in doing so,” Dempsey Law managing partner Heath Mynsberge wrote in support of Weber’s application to the State Bar of Wisconsin’s Rural Practice Development Program.
Weber’s return comes as smaller communities face a problem that does not always announce itself until someone needs a lawyer.
“The need extends across nearly every area of law,” Weber said. “When I was growing up near Markesan, there were far more attorneys practicing in the area than there are today.”
Some retired. Some moved away. Some became judges.
The need for representation did not go with them.
Weber’s practice focuses primarily on litigation. So far, his work has ranged from complex business disputes to landlord-tenant cases. He also is a member of the firm’s municipal law team, which represents local governments, and he hopes to expand into estate planning.
“As the number of local attorneys has declined, the need for accessible, high-quality legal representation has increased,” Weber said.
Weber had already accepted Dempsey Law’s offer when he applied for the State Bar’s Rural Practice Development Program. The program helps lawyers establish practices in eligible rural communities through a two-year commitment, financial assistance and professional resources.
For a new lawyer carrying law-school costs, the help was practical.
“Because of the cost of law school, many new graduates — including me — have limited funds as they begin their careers,” Weber said. “The stipend eased the financial burden of moving back to the area.”
The program provides a $5,000 stipend at the start of the commitment and another $5,000 after it is completed. Weber also plans to use its continuing legal education resources as his practice develops.
But the decision to return was not mainly about the program.
Growing up near Markesan, Weber watched the number of local attorneys decline while the legal needs of residents, businesses and local governments remained.
“That contrast showed me how valuable another local attorney could be,” he said.
His roots are close by. Weber’s brother, Dr. Wade Weber, is a large-animal veterinarian at the clinic next door to Dempsey Law’s Waupun office.
“This is home, and I plan to stay, build my practice, and build my life here,” Weber said.
The Rural Practice Development Program is funded by the Wisconsin Law Foundation’s Kathryn Rasmussen Bullon Fund to Enhance Legal Representation. Its next application deadline is Oct. 26.
