About Michelle L.
Michelle L. Hildebrand built a law career that began in classrooms and moved quickly into courtrooms. She pairs an academic grounding in criminal justice with practical experience from multiple clerkships and externships. Colleagues describe her as methodical in court work and attentive to procedural detail.
She earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Indiana University South Bend in 2002. After several years of work and study, she returned to law school and received her J.D. from Valparaiso University School of Law in 2014. Those years of formal training gave her both doctrinal knowledge and a familiarity with courtroom practice.
Early in her legal training she sought hands-on experience. In 2012 she served as a law clerk at the Law Office of Weiss & Schmidgall, P.C., and worked as an extern for the Porter County Circuit Court. The following year she split time between a law clerk position at OlsenCampbell, Ltd. and an externship with the Indiana State Police. Those roles exposed her to litigation support, court procedure, and the practical mechanics of case preparation. They also offered direct exposure to county court dockets and the investigative side of certain matters.
Hildebrand is admitted to practice in Indiana and is authorized to appear before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Her background in criminal justice and her sequence of clerkships and externships have translated into courtroom familiarity and litigation experience. She has worked on matters that require careful attention to procedural deadlines, evidentiary issues, and coordination with public agencies.
In day-to-day practice she draws on that combination of classroom training and courthouse experience. Her work involves preparing filings, handling motions, and representing clients in proceedings at the state and federal appellate level when necessary. She maintains memberships in professional organizations and participates in the local legal community. She currently practices in Indiana and before the Seventh Circuit, concentrating on civil litigation and court-related matters.
