Mark L. Thomsen

Mark L. Thomsen was born in Blair, Nebraska, during the winter of 1954. He grew up in Nigeria, Africa, until 12 years old, dropped out of high school at age 17, and when the Inland Steel mill department in East Chicago, Indiana, shut down in 1984 (where Mark had proudly worked as a steelworker for nearly eight years and was elected as a Local 1010 USWA union representative), he and his wife, Grace, and daughter, Sonja, moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Mark started law school at Marquette University and after graduating cum laude in 1987, he served as law clerk to the Hon. John L. Coffey, Circuit Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

His 35 years as a practicing lawyer, in both state and federal courts, have been and remain primarily devoted to personal injury (e.g. car and truck crashes), civil rights (Sec. 1983 claims), medical malpractice, nursing home abuse and legal malpractice claims. Mark strives to create a legal infrastructure designed to expand justice and protect people and their individual rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. During his tenure, whether by settlement or trial whenever necessary, Mark has successfully obtained millions of dollars for those individuals, families and clients he has been honored to represent.

Mark is a member of the American Association for Justice, past-president (2009) and board of directors member of the Wisconsin Association for Justice (WAJ), member of the WAJ Amicus Committee, Wisconsin Chapter member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (2019 – present) and a member of the American Bar Association, Milwaukee Bar Association and Eastern District of Wisconsin Bar Association. He has also been recognized by Super Lawyers (2005 – present), Best Lawyers (2009 – present) and Martindale-Hubbell, AV rated.

In addition to his extensive involvement in the legal community, Mark served on the board of directors for the Southeast Wisconsin Professional Baseball Park District (2004–2022) and was the organization’s board secretary. Mark is also a commissioner on the Wisconsin Elections Commission (2016 – present), the agency charged with maintaining the integrity of voting in state and federal elections in Wisconsin. He served as the agency’s first chairperson from 2016 to 2017. Mark is additionally a board member and president of the Ascension Lutheran Church Endowment.

Mark and Grace have been married for 45 years. Their daughter Sonja is a brilliant artist and their son, Jens Theodore Thomsen, was born on December 4, 1987 and died on October 31, 2015 (at the end of the second week of Mark’s three week medical malpractice trial). Mark and Grace have been blessed with five beautiful grandchildren — Orjan, Sienna, Aiden, Michael and Liv.

Favorite Book: “The Savage Detectives” by Roberto Bolaño

Favorite Quote
“Never give in—never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.”

-Winston Churchill