Hughes County Lawyers

Eric began his journey to the legal field by working as a life insurance agent prior to returning to college. While working with a family that was struggling financially, he learned just how important proper planning is for all families, not just wealthy families. He learned that day of the unexpected death of this family’s teenage daughter. He saw how much their entire family went through because they were not prepared for such a horrific situation. It was that day and that story that made Eric realize that he wanted to help make sure that families didn’t have to go...

Terry Prendergast is a South Dakota trusts and estates and trust company attorney at Davenport, Evans, Hurwitz & Smith, LLP. Terry joined the firm in 2017 with a prestigious career of nearly 40 years practicing law in Sioux Falls. Interacting with counsel and clients across the country and the world, Terry extols the virtues of South Dakota’s top-in-the-nation trust laws, flexible procedures and low tax environment, stating, “To open up people’s eyes to one of the best kept secrets in business—that South Dakota has a flexible, advantageous and responsive environment for business, estate and wealth planning, gives me great satisfaction.”

Terry’s...

I have extensive experience in family law matters in both Minnesota and South Dakota where much of my career has been focused on Divorces, Custody, Protection Orders, and Child Support. As I moved to South Dakota in 2021, I began working with Tribal Courts and began working in criminal matters as well. I always want to help people in their times of need and in these areas, are some of the hardest times a person may have. I am here to help you navigate these times with a kind ear and legal expertise.

Vince Roche is a Commercial Litigation attorney at Davenport, Evans, Hurwitz & Smith, LLP in Sioux Falls, SD. Vince focuses his practice on commercial litigation, including trusts and estates litigation, class action defense and defending financial institutions. He also has substantial experience representing clients in arbitration and mediation matters arising out of commercial disputes. Prior to joining the firm in 2008, Vince practiced for five years in Chicago with Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Novack & Macey LLP. Since joining the firm, he has obtained dismissal of several multimillion-dollar class action lawsuits against firm clients in both state and...

A native of Burke, South Dakota, Tiffany joined the firm in 2007. Her practice focuses primarily on banking and financial services law with an emphasis on bank regulatory compliance. Tiffany advises clients with regard to matters involving various state and federal banking laws, including the Truth-in-Lending Act (TILA), Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA), Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), UDAAP, E-SIGN, and their implementing regulations. Tiffany also regularly assists financial institution clients in the drafting of consumer disclosures...

Brooke Swier Schloss leads Swier Law Firm's Family Law Practice Group and focuses her practice on divorce, child custody, child support, elder law, spousal support, property division, pre- and post-marital planning, and adoptions. Brooke is also the author of the book 15 Tips for Choosing a South Dakota Divorce Lawyer and serves on the South Dakota Bar Association's Family Law Committee. Brooke is a graduate of the University of South Dakota School of Law, where she served on the Board of Editors for the South Dakota Law Review and was a published author. She is a member of the...

Mark Ekse - Registered Patent Attorney and Member of the State Bar of South Dakota. Mark’s practice focus includes licensing, trademark and copyright law. He also represents clients involved in patent disputes, infringement cases and intellectual property cases. Mark represents clients needing legal guidance with registering and protecting software and computer technology, electronic commerce and digital enterprise, as well as trade secret protection and disputes. Mark is registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Mark currently serves as an adjunct professor of Patent Law and Intellectual Property at the University of South Dakota. He received his undergraduate...

Anthony Hohn is a litigation attorney at Davenport, Evans, Hurwitz & Smith, LLP in Sioux Falls, SD. A Sioux Falls native, Anthony joined the firm in 2008 as a member of the firm’s litigation section and became a partner in 2014. His practice includes of a wide variety of litigation, including commercial litigation, creditors’ rights, employment litigation, and condemnation litigation. Anthony interned with the firm in the summer of 2006 and is a 2007 graduate of the University of South Dakota School of Law, where he served as lead articles editor for the South Dakota Law Review. Following graduation, Anthony...

Ellery Grey is a Board Certified Criminal Attorney who has devoted his practice to protecting the rights of the accused. Mr. Grey practices in both federal and state court where he has defended clients on charges from drug possession to murder.

Growing up on a farm Jeff Cole understood how hard it was to be a farmer so he decided he wanted to fight for farmers to get their fair share in our legal system and became a lawyer. Since he decided to become a lawyer he has a diverse career but now mainly focuses on trials and litigation. He has tried 7 cases to the South Dakota Supreme Court and one case to the US Court of Appeals. He has even won a US Supreme Court Case where he was trial counsel.

Don McCarty is a native of Wakonda, SD and received his juris doctor from the University of South Dakota (USD) in 1996. He joined the firm shortly after graduation and became a partner in 2001. Don’s general practice includes criminal law, family law and divorce, personal injury, worker’s compensation, business law and Social Security Disability. Don serves as a member of the South Dakota Army National Guard. He and his wife, Ann, have a daughter and son.

South Dakota lawyer Mitch Peterson is a partner focused on commercial litigation. As such, he assists both large and small clients, as well as individuals, with claims arising out of commercial transactions. He also does a significant amount of general litigation work for both companies and individuals.

This work includes litigation, trials, arbitration, and appellate work in the following areas: conditional use permits and variances, confidential information, construction, contracts, copyright, corporate/ownership, estate/probate, land use, non-competition and non-solicitation, non-disclosure agreements, product liability, professional services/negligence (legal, architectural, engineering, accounting, software development, financial services), real estate, sales of businesses, sales of goods, technology/software,...

Robert E. Hayes is a Financial Services lawyer at Davenport, Evans, Hurwitz & Smith, LLP in Sioux Falls, SD. Bob has long been recognized for his expertise in the field of creditors rights law, a fact reflected not only by his having served for years on the State Bar’s Debtor Creditor Committee but accumulating nearly a decade as chair of that committee. Bob has received an AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rating by Martindale-Hubbell®, for the highest level of professional excellence for their legal knowledge, communication skills and ethical standards. He was also selected by Best Lawyers® in the areas of...

Reece Almond is a partner and litigation attorney at Davenport Evans with a practice consisting primarily of commercial and complex litigation, land-use litigation, and insurance-defense litigation. Originally from Huron, South Dakota, Reece joined the firm in 2014 having received his bachelor of science degree from the University of South Dakota in mathematics and political science. He is a graduate from the University of Minnesota Law School and clerked for the Honorable Karen E. Schreier of the U.S. District Court of South Dakota before joining Davenport Evans.

Reece was selected to the Great Plains Rising Stars 2019 in the area of Business...

Mark Krogstad is a Trusts and Estates attorney practicing in South Dakota and Minnesota with Davenport, Evans, Hurwitz & Smith, LLP in Sioux Falls, SD. A Willmar, Minnesota native and Augustana University graduate, Mark joined the firm after practicing in Minnesota and receiving his Master’s Degree in Taxation from the University of Florida. He practices in the areas of estate planning, business succession planning, tax planning, charitable gift planning, and estate and trust administration. As a part of his practice, Mark assists clients in: *Drafting wills, durable powers of attorneys, and trusts, such as revocable...

Charles Gullickson is a Financial Services lawyer at Davenport, Evans, Hurwitz & Smith, LLP in Sioux Falls, SD. Financial and insurance regulatory matters make up a substantial portion of Chuck’s practice. He devotes a significant amount of time to such banking law matters as lending transactions, loan documentation, bank acquisitions and branching, and Chuck advises banking clients regularly on regulatory matters and oversight of third party vendors and servicers, and credit card lending and securitizations. Chuck also handles various insurance regulatory matters and serves as Executive Director and General Counsel for the South Dakota Life & Health Insurance Guaranty Association....

I have over 30 years experience helping people with difficult problems. I am a former public defender and later a prosecutor. I have had numerous jury trials. My experience enables me to help you in cases from personal injury/automobile accidents to criminal and DUI defense as well as family law. My family law practice includes divorce, custody, child support, adoption, guardianship and conservatorship matters. I also handle bankruptcy cases for people looking for a new start financially.

Mark J. Welter was born and raised in Yankton, South Dakota; and Mark has lived in South Dakota his whole life. Mark earned a business degree at the University of South Dakota, and his law degree at the University of South Dakota School of Law. Mark then worked two years as a law clerk for John B. Jones, U.S. District Judge, District South Dakota, Southern Division. Mark then worked for 15 years as an insurance defense personal injury trial lawyer and worker’s compensation lawyer for Woods, Fuller, Schultz & Smith P.C. in Sioux Falls, defending clients against...

South Dakota lawyer Matt Van Heuvelen is a partner in the business law section at Davenport Evans. Matt, who is licensed to practice in South Dakota and Iowa, focuses his practice on dynasty trusts and trust administration, business transactions, estate planning, probate, tax planning and fiduciary litigation. Clients he represents include individuals, families, trustees, bank trust departments, trust companies, financial advisors, businesses and charitable organizations. Matt is a member of American Bar Association, the State Bar of South Dakota, the Iowa State Bar Association and the Sioux Falls Estate Planning Council. While in law school at the University of Iowa,...

Stephen Demik specializes in complex civil and criminal litigation, and trials of all types. He is an experienced trial attorney, practicing in state and federal courts for nearly 15 years. He speaks Spanish proficiently. A graduate of University of California, Hastings College of the Law and a faculty teacher at the Trial Lawyers College, Stephen Demik has a wide background in many areas– from civil plaintiffs work to criminal defense, from tribal court to immigration law, from juvenile court to Guantanamo Bay. For over 14 years, he has tried cases in both state and federal court, in both South Dakota and...

Steve Johnson is a native of South Dakota, and was born in Sioux Falls. He attended Augustana College where he graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1973. He then graduated from the University of South Dakota School Of Law in 1976 as a member of the Thomas Sterling Honor Society and the South Dakota Law Review. Steve continues to be a frequent lecturer at the South Dakota School of Law. His many professional affiliations and distinctions include membership in the American College of Trial Lawyers, International Trial Lawyers Association, American Board of Trial Advocates and the Association of Trial Lawyers...

David R. Hansen grew up in a family of nine children. He grew up in the outdoors of New Mexico and Colorado. He completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Utah earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Physics. After working for a five years as a detention officer in Wyoming, he continued his formal education. He completed law school at the University of Wyoming College of Law. He focused his studies on estate planning, business transactions and intellectual property. At school David was the appointed student director of the Estate Planning Practicum; he was elected President of...

Aaron Pilcher focuses his practice on corporate law, estate planning and administration, and general litigation. Aaron appreciates the opportunity to work alongside his clients to protect their life's work, and plan for what lies ahead.

South Dakota lawyer David Rezac is a member of the Davenport, Evans, Hurwitz & Smith Transactions and General Business practice group, and his practice covers all aspects of business transactions, as well as federal and state trademark registrations. David advises clients in both large and small business transactions, and his expertise covers entity formation, leasing and financing arrangements, real estate sales, mergers, acquisitions, and general contract preparation and negotiation. David also has extensive experience in obtaining federal and state trademark registrations and can assist clients in determining the advantages of registration, as well as completing the registration process.

David joined...

David L. Ganje is a commercial law and commercial litigation attorney and also maintains a natural resources practice. He has grounded his legal experience as a practicing attorney, a former commodity arbitrator, a member of the board of directors of an S&L and an adjunct professor to hone his skills in these areas of practice. Born and raised in Aberdeen, South Dakota, David handles matters related to mineral law, oil and gas law, energy law and water law in his natural resources practice. The practice includes representation before local and federal regulatory bodies. In his commercial law and commercial litigation practice, David...

John R. Murphy has been practicing criminal defense in the state and federal courts of South Dakota for over 20 years. His practice is limited to criminal defense, and he practices at the investigatory, trial, appellate and habeas corpus stages. His firm is committed to proving high quality and aggressive representation to those accused of crimes.

Keith Gauer is a Financial Services lawyer at Davenport, Evans, Hurwitz & Smith, LLP in Sioux Falls, SD. His practice is focused on the representation of banks and companies involved in the development, marketing, and distribution of financial services. He regularly counsels banks with respect to the negotiation and drafting of agreements related to national financial products, including contracts relating to credit card products, prepaid cards, student loans, and other national products. While representing payment card issuers, Keith also regularly works on agreements to document the transfer of card portfolios between institutions. In connection with payment card programs, Keith has...