Brian Anderson Bio

Brian is a versatile attorney, practicing in multiple areas of the law. The more arcane, detailed and complex the law, the more he enjoys it. One of his primary areas of practice is the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), which was famously described by the U.S. Supreme Court as a “comprehensive and reticulated statute.” Another primary area of practice is tax law. Can the Internal Revenue Code be described as arcane, detailed, and complex? He advises businesses and individuals in a variety of complex legal and tax transactions. In particular, Brian works extensively with qualified and non-qualified retirement plans and health/welfare plans. That work takes him into such complex matters as 401(k) plans, employee stock ownership plans (ESOPS), 403(b) tax-sheltered annuities, pension plans, phantom stock plans, section 125 cafeteria plans, the health-plan nondiscrimination and privacy rules under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and federal health care reform. He establishes nonprofit organizations and navigates them through the tax-exemption process. He advises individuals on trust and estate matters, especially involving retirement accounts, charitable giving, or business succession planning. He recently served for four years on the Board of Governors for the State Bar of Wisconsin. Brian also enjoys working on international client matters. He represents the firm on the governing board of Lexwork International, a network of law firms in 28 countries. Although Brian speaks German fluently, he admits he could use more practice.