EDITORIAL TEAM
Our attorneys and contributors have in-depth experience with appellate litigation.
Spencer Cady
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(515) 283-3118
Leslie Behaunek
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(515) 283-8187
As a litigator, Leslie Behaunek addresses diverse business disputes every day. Using skills honed as a judicial clerk, Leslie models the quality written and oral advocacy she saw in the courts. Leslie has experience litigating ERISA life, health, and disability benefits cases; ERISA and breach of fiduciary class actions; finance lease enforcement matters; bankruptcy matters; and healthcare and labor and employment claims. She provides representation before the Iowa appellate courts and the Eighth Circuit. A strong involvement with outside activities expands Leslie’s view of law and keeps her connected to the broader Iowa community.
Matt McGuire
Email Matt
(515) 283-8014
A successful litigant tells a compelling story. Matt McGuire draws on his background in journalism to ensure his clients’ stories resonate with the court. Applying his experience handling litigation and antitrust matters at a large law firm in Washington, D.C., Matt acts as an effective advocate in all aspects of his clients’ business. His current commercial and business litigation practice also builds on his judicial clerkship, which provided valuable perspective on the litigation experience—perspective he now applies to his clients’ cases.
Logan Eliasen
Email Logan
(515) 283-3119
Logan Eliasen is a passionate advocate with a wide-ranging litigation practice. Prior to entering private practice, Logan gained invaluable knowledge of the judicial system through several clerkship experiences, which encompassed federal and all levels of Iowa’s state courts. Logan learned the expectations of judges—what they want to see in arguments and written briefs. Oral arguments, where people turn written law into an active debate, continue to fascinate him. Logan knows the value of a well-crafted argument. In his work, he applies research, analysis, and creativity to tell his clients’ stories.
Dana Waterman Hempy
Email Dana
(515) 645-5528
Dana Waterman Hempy loves litigation’s continually moving parts and its new challenges. Dana’s experience as a law clerk for an Iowa Supreme Court justice gave her insight into effective written and oral advocacy. For thorny issues before the Iowa Supreme Court, Dana was tasked with analyzing cases and presenting the best arguments on both sides. Reading appellate briefs as a judicial law clerk proved to Dana that writing matters. Because every client and every fact pattern is different, her job is to find unique avenues of persuasion to get each judge’s attention. She continually looks for opportunities to make her arguments stand out.
FEATURED POSTS
Iowa Supreme Court Limits Human Trafficking Liability Under 2024 Statute, Requiring an Actual Victim
The Iowa Supreme Court affirmed dismissal of a human trafficking charge and clarified that, under the 2024 statute, a defendant cannot commit human trafficking by attempting to buy sex from a victim who does not exist.
Iowa Supreme Court affirms child endangerment convictions and extends emotional harm theory to siblings
In a 5–2 decision filed on June 12, 2026, the Iowa Supreme Court in State v. Gibbs upheld a mother’s three child endangerment convictions under Iowa Code section 726.6(1)(a). Chief Justice Christensen wrote the majority opinion, joined by Justices McDonald, Oxley, McDermott, and May. Justice Mansfield filed a partial dissent, joined by Justice Waterman, concurring as to two convictions but dissenting as to the third.
Iowa Supreme Court upholds harassment conviction and clarifies that a defendant need not initiate contact to commit harassment
In a unanimous decision filed on May 22, 2026, the Iowa Supreme Court in State v. Hall held that a defendant need not be the person who initiated an encounter to commit harassment.
Search of visitor’s backpack not in physical possession falls within premises warrant, Iowa Supreme Court holds
In a divided 5–2 decision issued on March 27, 2026, the Iowa Supreme Court held that the search of a visitor’s backpack found on the premises during the execution of a search warrant did not violate the visitor’s rights under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution or article I, section 8 of the Iowa Constitution.
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On Brief: Iowa’s Appellate Blog is devoted to appellate litigation with a focus on the Iowa Supreme Court, the Iowa Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.