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2012 Forty Under 40 Winner: Michael Abbott
Friday, March 16, 2012 7:00 AM
Age 34 | attorney, Faegre Baker Daniels LLP
When Michael and Katie Abbott got married, they had a big decision to make. Should Michael accept offers to practice law in Chicago or stay in Greater Des Moines, where the couple knew they would eventually wind up to raise children?
“We thought, ‘Why go elsewhere and come back?’ It’s funny how your perception changes through every phase of your life, but we think it’s great,” Michael Abbott said of the decision to stay home, where the couple is raising Harry, 4, and Alex, 1.
That decision didn’t slow Abbott’s ascent in the legal profession. He went to work for Belin McCormick P.C., specializing in financial transactions. He was voted in as a partner after seven years, the earliest, under the firm’s policies, that the step could be taken.
With his work in corporate finances, Abbott saw the financial crisis hit with full force.
“Most of my job is unemotional; it’s a lot of companies, a lot of economics,” Abbott said. “But that hit home. It wasn’t a solution that you could just pull out of a bag of tricks.”
He watched companies fail. He also helped companies survive, often at the grace of a lender who saw the benefit of working through problem loans and finances.
Abbott left no hard feelings behind when he exited Belin to join a much larger national law firm, Faegre Baker Daniels LLP.
“Mike is a top-notch attorney and a leader among his peers and community,” Belin attorney Robert Mullen said in a nominating letter.
Five reasons he’s a 40:
• Greater Des Moines YMCA Camp, board and executive committee.
• Volunteer Lawyers Network.
• CFA Society of Iowa, pro bono counsel.
• United Way of Central Iowa, income cabinet.
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Iowa Bowl for Kids Sake team coordinator.
Fun fact:
Abbott enjoys building things with son Harry, 4. Michael holds the nail. Harry swings the hammer.
Meet the 2012 Forty Under 40 Honorees
• Michael Abbott - Faegre Baker Daniels LLP
• Sondra Ashmore - IBM Corp.
• Shannon Baird - JE Dunn Construction Co.
• J. Eric Boehlert - Ahlers & Cooney P.C.
• Nataliya Boychenko - Holmes Murphy and Associates Inc.
• Becki Brommel - BrownWinick
• Catherine Cownie - BrownWinick
• Spencer Cox - Vending Services Inc.
• Scott Crawford - RDG Planning & Design
• Tony Dickinson - Wells Fargo Bank
• Shannon Duval - Mercy Foundation
• Meg Fitz - Greater Des Moines Partnership
• Tim Hayes - McLellan Marketing Group
• Christi Hegstad - MAP Professional Development Inc.
• Naura Heiman Godar - StruXture Architects LLC
• Danielle Hermann - OPN Architects Inc.
• Sara Kobilka - Science Center of Iowa
• Liz Lidgett - Kum & Go LC
• Holly Logan - Weinhardt & Logan P.C.
• Matthew Marckmann - Morgan Stanley Smith Barney
• Bryan Michael - Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc.
• Ben Milne - Dwolla Corp.
• Suzanne Mineck - Mid-Iowa Health Foundation
• Nikki Miras Mordini - Davis Brown Law Firm
• David Nelmark - Belin McCormick P.C.
• Anthony Nguyen - Wells Fargo Bank
• Lynh Nguyen Patterson - Delta Dental of Iowa
• Matt Nuetzman - InFocus Partners
• Brad Phillips - Farm Bureau Financial Services
• Tina Potthoff - MidAmerican Energy Co.
• Erin Schneider - Censeo Solutions Inc.
• Steve SchraderBachar - Wells Fargo Home Mortgage Inc.
• Jamie Schug - Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority
• Kristina Stanger - Nyemaster Goode P.C.
• Nate Stewart - Perishable Distributors of Iowa Ltd.
• Jason Stone - Davis Brown Law Firm
• Melissa Stover - Bankers Trust Co.
• Tray Wade - HCI Care Services
• Eric Wieland - Federal Emergency Management Agency
• Geoff Wood - Silicon Prairie News
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