Des Moines-based Weinhardt Law Firm has rebranded to Weinhardt & Lantz, a move made as part of the firm’s strategic growth and long-term plans.

Today, the firm announced Todd Lantz as a named partner along with an investment in additional attorneys to meet the growing legal needs of companies, executives and fellow attorneys.

Lantz joined the law firm in 2013 – a little over a year after it was founded by Mark Weinhardt.

Previously with Belin McCormick, P.C., Lantz specializes in complex commercial litigation, white-collar criminal defense, trial practice and appeals. He is a graduate of the University of Iowa and Harvard Law School. Following law school, he served as a judicial clerk for the Honorable Michael J. Melloy of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

Weinhardt & Lantz is also announcing the addition of attorneys Kyle Essley and Will Admussen.

Essley comes to Weinhardt & Lantz after serving as an assistant United States attorney, practicing at two large national firms, and clerking for the Honorable Steven M. Colloton of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. Essley has tried eight federal jury trials and represented dozens of clients in front of judges, arbitrators, and regulators. As both plaintiff and defense counsel he has worked on cases claiming millions, and sometimes billions, of dollars in fraud losses. He is a graduate of Kansas State University and the University of Iowa College of Law, where he was the editor in chief of the Iowa Law Review.

Admussen joins Weinhardt & Lantz from the Iowa Attorney General’s Office, where he was an assistant solicitor general. Previously, he served as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Northern District of Texas. He brings experience in civil litigation, criminal and civil appeals, and fraud investigations. Admussen has tried civil cases for the federal government and argued before the Iowa Supreme Court, Iowa Court of Appeals and the Third, Fifth and Eighth Circuits. He is a graduate of the University of Kansas and the University of Chicago Law School. He served as an articles editor for the University of Chicago Law Review, where his work was also published. Admussen clerked for judges in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth and Eighth Circuits.

“This announcement of Weinhardt & Lantz is part of a strategic vision to stay focused on complex business disputes, white-collar criminal matters, appeals, and internal investigations, while growing generational strength. I’m excited for the future and those we serve,” Mark Weinhardt, founder, said in a press release.