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Stephen E. Mays

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Location:

Middleton, WI

Phone:

Fax:

608-257-0441

Email:

Attorney Mays, as the owner of Mays Law Office, LLC, practices in all areas of criminal and traffic defense throughout the entire State of Wisconsin.  Prior to his becoming a defense attorney, Attorney Mays worked in the Dane County District Attorney's office.

He has won OWI cases at the municipal, circuit, appellate and Supreme Court levels, and appears regularly before the Federal District Court of Wisconsin and the United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit.  He is also admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court.

He is a past President and member of the Dane County Criminal Defense Lawyers' Association, as well as a sustaining member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and the Bar Associations for the Western and Eastern Districts of Wisconsin.  He has been a member of the James E. Doyle Inns of Court, as well as the National College for DUI Defense. He is one of the original members of the Drunk Driving Roundtable - an association of attorneys dedicated to the tenacious defense of citizens accused of drunk driving.

He was selected to be a member of the Department of Transportation's Technical Committee, and has testified before various committees regarding proposed motor vehicle legislation, most recently convincing a sub-committee to not extend the territorial boundaries for OWI enforcement.  He is a frequent lecturer on the defense of intoxicated driving, which includes an annual presentation by the Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers in the "Strategies in Handling OWI Cases in Wisconsin" series, a seminar touted as a "must attend" for Wisconsin lawyers defending OWI cases.

Several of Attorney Mays' cases have attracted substantial media attention, including the successful defense of an individual charged with killing his twin infant daughters while allegedly driving drunk.  His cross-examination techniques have gained him statewide recognition as one which has police officers persuading prosecutors to amend charges so as to not have to subject them to his cross-examination again.

Areas of Practice

  • Criminal Defense
  • Traffic Defense
  • OWI Defense

Bar Admissions

  • Wisconsin, 1995
  • U.S. District Court Eastern District of Wisconsin, 1997
  • U.S. District Court Western District of Wisconsin, 1995
  • U.S. Supreme Court, 1999
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 7th Circuit

Education

  • Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Lansing, Michigan
    • JD

Representative Cases

  • City of Sun Prairie v. Davis, 1998212394
  • County of Jefferson v. Renz, 1999053324
  • State of Wisconsin v. Conner
  • State of Wisconsin v. Repenshek
  • State of Wisconsin v. Granum, 1996144516

Classes/Seminars

  • Wisconsin Drunk Driving Seminar, OWI Roundtable Lecture Series
  • Richland County People's Court, Richland County
  • Lecturer, Defense of Intoxicated Driving
  • Presenter, Strategies in Handling OWI Cases in Wisconsin series

Honors and Awards

  • Madison’s Top Lawyers in the area of drunk driving and traffic violations, Madison Magazine Survey of Top Lawyers
  • SuperLawyer

Professional Associations and Memberships

  • Dane County Criminal Defense Lawyers' Association, Past President, 1999; Active Member
  • National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Active Member
  • Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Active Member
  • Bar Association for the Western Districts of Wisconsin, Active Member
  • Bar Association for the Eastern Districts of Wisconsin, Active Member
  • Department of Transportation’s, Technical Committee, Member
  • National DUI College, Former Member
  • State Bar of Wisconsin, Active Member
  • OWI Roundtable, Active Member
  • American Bar Association, Active Member
  • James E. Doyle Inns of Court, Former Member
  • DOT Executive Committee, Active Member