Bakke Norman attorneys Deanne Koll and William Wallo have been selected for inclusion in the 2027 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. Each was recognized in the practice area of Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law. The firm, which has served Northwest Wisconsin from offices in New Richmond, Baldwin, Menomonie, and Eau Claire since 1985, congratulates Attorneys Koll and Wallo on this prestigious honor.
The Best Lawyers in America is a peer-review publication, meaning both attorneys were selected by fellow lawyers. Only 5 percent of practicing lawyers in the United States are chosen as Best Lawyers. It is rare that two attorneys from an 11-attorney firm were chosen in the same practice area. This is Attorney Koll's first appearance in the publication, while Attorney Wallo has been listed in every edition since 2018, including being named the publication's 2022 Lawyer of the Year for the Eau Claire area in the same category.
Deanne Koll’s practice focuses on creditors' rights, commercial collections, and financial restructuring. She represents lenders, financial institutions, cooperatives, leasing companies, and other businesses throughout Wisconsin in matters that include creditor representation in bankruptcy proceedings, receivership actions, post-judgment enforcement, collateral recovery, and out-of-court restructurings and forbearance agreements. She also leads the firm's Municipal Prosecution Practice, which represents more than ten municipalities in western Wisconsin.
Attorney Koll has also held multiple leadership roles, including Treasurer of the State Bar of Wisconsin, Chair of its Board of Governors, and Wisconsin Delegate to the American Bar Association House of Delegates. She has been designated a Wisconsin Super Lawyer following 12 consecutive years as a Super Lawyers Rising Star. She regularly lectures on bankruptcy, collection, and business topics for the State Bar and the American Bankruptcy Institute.
"The lawyers who vote on this list are the same ones I deal with when a loan goes bad or a borrower files for bankruptcy, so they have a pretty good idea of how the other side manages a case," said Attorney Koll. "I have spent nearly 20 years representing lenders, cooperatives and businesses in Northwest Wisconsin, and most of that work happens quietly, in courtrooms and around conference tables. It’s an honor to be recognized by my peers, and even better to be on the list alongside Bill."
Bill Wallo concentrates his practice on bankruptcy and insolvency matters and also handles business transactions and commercial litigation for individuals, businesses, and financial institutions. He developed his practice skills working for a federal bankruptcy judge and now serves as a Subchapter V Small Business Bankruptcy Trustee for the bankruptcy courts in Wisconsin and Northern Illinois. He is a past Chair of the Bankruptcy, Insolvency and Creditor Rights Section of the State Bar of Wisconsin, holds an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell, and has been selected to Wisconsin Super Lawyers each year since 2016. He also presents regularly at legal education programs including the National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees annual conference and the Northwestern Wisconsin Bankruptcy Institute.
"I worked for a federal bankruptcy judge for a good many years before going back into private practice, and I now serve as a trustee in small business cases, so I have seen this work from a few different chairs," said Attorney Wallo. "Deanne and I come at these cases from different directions, so having both of us listed in this category says something about the depth the firm has built here."
Koll and Wallo lead the firm's bankruptcy, collections and financial restructuring practice group, which represents secured and unsecured creditors in Chapter 7, Chapter 11, Chapter 12 and Chapter 13 cases and assists receivers, creditors, landlords, vendors and guarantors in Wisconsin Chapter 128 receiverships. The firm's bankruptcy and creditors' rights attorneys in Wisconsin have appeared in proceedings across Wisconsin and in Minnesota, Delaware, Texas, Oklahoma and Nebraska. The recognition follows the selection of Attorneys Koll, Wallo and Tim O'Brien as 2026 Wisconsin Super Lawyers.
Bakke Norman was founded in 1985 by Gary Bakke, George Norman and Tom Schumacher, with a first office in the historic New Richmond Heritage Center. The firm later moved to a new building in New Richmond, added offices in Baldwin and Menomonie, and opened a fourth office in Eau Claire in January 2021. Its attorneys represent individuals, businesses, and municipalities across Northwest Wisconsin in civil and business litigation, business transactions, debtor and creditor matters, personal injury, criminal defense, municipal law, tax law, estate planning, and probate
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For more information about Bakke Norman, contact the company here:
Bakke Norman
Tom Schumacher
715-246-3800
info@bakkenorman.com
1200 Heritage Dr, New Richmond, WI 54017
