Fluegel, Anderson, McLaughlin & Brutlag, Chartered, is a time-tested law firm in West Central Minnesota. The firm was founded by George Beise in 1905.
Like a number of lawyers over the history of the firm, Beise also served as a judge. He was the first municipal judge in Stevens County, continuing to practice law while serving on the bench. In 1946, Thomas Stahler began practicing with Beise.
From that date to the present the firm has slowly and steadily expanded, with the changes in attorneys reflected in the law firm’s name over the years:
1905 George Beise opens a solo practice in Morris
1946 Thomas Stahler joins George Beise, renaming the firm Beise and Stahler Law Firm
1947 Beise retires, Stahler continues to practice solo until the 1950’s when Don Giberson joins him and the firm becomes Stahler Giberson law firm.
1963 Terry Collins joins the firm: Stahler, Giberson, Collins Law Firm
1967 The law firm becomes Giberson, Collins Law Firm when Tom Stahler leaves the firm for a judicial appointment, serving for 10 years as an Eighth Judicial District Judge, then serving for six years as a Minnesota Supreme Court Visiting Judge
1974 Don Giberson leaves the firm to serve as Eighth Judicial District Judge; Michael Fluegel (1947-2013) joins the Collins Law Firm
1977 Warrenn Anderson joins the firm
1979 Robert Dalager joins the firm
1980 Terry Collins elected to judicial position in Eighth Judicial District; Steven Gawron joins the firm of Fluegel, Anderson, Dalager & Gawron, Chartered, and remains with the firm until 1986
1986 Gerald Seibel joins the firm, changing the name to Fluegel, Anderson, Dalager & Seibel, Chartered; Jon Dalager also joins the firm and remains for two years
1992 Gerald Seibel leaves the firm to accept an appointment as Eighth Judicial District Judge
1993 Fluegel, Anderson & Dalager Chartered merges with one area firm: Helseth & Brutlag, Chartered, of Elbow Lake
1994 Amy Doll joins the firm
2004 Matthew Fluegel joins the firm
2006 Jason Lina and Lynnae L.G. Lina join the firm
2009 Dennis Helseth returns to solo practice, leading to the firm’s current name: Fluegel, Anderson, McLaughlin & Brutlag, Chartered. Paul Brutlag, a native of the Elbow Lake/Wendell area, remains with the current firm. The firm’s connection to Ortonville also extends back many years, with the Pflueger, Kunz & McLaughlin Law Firm tracing its roots back to 1881. Dave McLaughlin, who was born and raised in Ortonville, joined that firm in 1987.
2012 Branch office opens in Wheaton, Minnesota.
2016 Attorney Amy Doll is appointed to the Eighth Judicial District bench. She follows a proud tradition by becoming another attorney over the history of the firm to serve as a judge.
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The attraction of the current law firm is the personal service and understanding of rural Minnesota issues that can be offered to clients. A critical part of the attorney-client relationship is often missing for people in the area who have sought the services of “big-city” firms. With their roots firmly established in West Central Minnesota, the attorneys and staff of the firm can better identify with clients than someone outside the area. As one client commented “you seem to understand what we’re talking about.”
Though the desire to retain a home-town feel has always been important to the members of the firm, in recent years it has also become obvious that there is an increasing need to concentrate in specific areas of law. While George Beise offered legal services in many areas, the current members of the firm each concentrate and excel in a few specific areas of law. By pooling their talents and interests, the attorneys at Fluegel, Anderson, McLaughlin & Brutlag, Chartered, are able to provide comprehensive, high quality legal services to their clients in a variety of areas, while remaining competitive in an increasingly complex legal environment.
The attorneys at Fluegel, Anderson, McLaughlin & Brutlag, Chartered are proud of their background, but are equally excited about moving forward and continuing to provide quality legal services in their community.