EDUCATION
• J.D., University of Arizona, 2001
• M.A., Arizona State University, 2000
• B.A., Utah State University, 1995

BAR ADMISSIONS
• Arizona, 2001
• U.S. District Court, District of Arizona, 2003
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit

PRACTICE AREAS
• Commercial Litigation
• Appellate Practice

E-MAIL
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ATTORNEY BIOGRAPHY

Mr. LaChance is Baird, Williams & Greer’s special counsel. As his title suggests, Mr. LaChance’s role at the firm is sui generis. He handles some of the firm’s most difficult legal questions. Mr. LaChance has exceptional research, writing and analytical skills. He helps the firm’s attorneys develop and present legal arguments. His ability to analyze and explicate complex issues makes him particularly adept at writing motions and briefs. In fact, he rarely loses dispositive motions.

Mr. LaChance’s practice focuses on complex commercial litigation. He has experience in all aspects of business and corporate litigation, including contract disputes, business torts and unfair competition. His practice also involves securities litigation. Indeed, for several years, Mr. LaChance worked extensively on the Baptist Foundation litigation, which involved the largest civil and criminal securities fraud cases in Arizona history. As a corollary to his commercial practice, Mr. LaChance often litigates in bankruptcy court, bringing adversary proceedings on behalf of defrauded parties. Finally, as someone that enjoys grappling with and explaining complicated issues. Mr. LaChance specializes in appellate practice. He has taken and prevailed on appeals before the Arizona Court of Appeals, the Arizona Supreme Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Mr. LaChance’s practice is informed by a varied academic background. He received a B.A. in classical and medieval history from Utah State Universtiy. He then obtained and M.A. in philosophy from Arizona State University where his research focused on logic and the philosophy of science. He received his J.D. from the University of Arizona.

Mr. LaChance developed his unparalleled research and writing abilities from years of scholarly research and publishing. As a graduate student, he as the editorial assistant for two academic journals: The International Journal of Organic Evolution and Philosophial Studies: An International Journal for Philosophy in the Analytic Tradition. In law school, Mr. LaChance was articles editor for Arizona Journal of International and Comparative Law. The editorial board recognized his exceptional work by awarding him the journal’s 110% award. As a law student Mr. LaChance worked as a research assistant in criminology and the economic analysis of law. He was a member of the University of Arizona’s Program on Law, Philosophy and Social Theory. Mr. LaChance independently researched issues affecting corporate governance, which culminated in his published paper “Nature v. Nurture: Evolution, Path Dependence and Corporate Governance.” That paper won an award from the American Bar Association for writing on business law and the University of Arizona’s award for best published student paper.

Since law school, Mr. LaChance has continued to refine his writing and analytical skills. He served as a judicial clerk for The Honorable Susan Ehrlich on the Arizona Court of Appeals. He is a member of the American Society of Legal Writers. Mr. LaChance was recently a panelist and presenter at “Philosophical v. Economic Approaches to Legal Theory and Practice,” at Arizona State University.

Aside from his legal practice, Mr. LaChance has worked as a freelance writer and film critic. He has published magazine and newspaper articles on media and culture.