Executive. Pastor. Attorney. In that order.

33

Years in executive leadership & ministry before practicing law

250+

Churches advised on compliance, governance, and property tax exemption

1:1

You work directly with Dan — no handoff to associates or paralegals

The short version.

I came to the law late, and on purpose. For thirty-three years before I started practicing, I worked in ministry and executive leadership. I planted a church in Los Angeles and grew it from 20 people to 120 over six years. I served as executive pastor at a 2,500-person church in Baltimore. I joined Bayside Church in Sacramento as national church relations pastor for six years, working with church networks across the country. I managed the Thrive Conference from 2016 to 2020, a national gathering that served hundreds of churches.

What I learned in those three decades is that the legal work and the rest of the work run together. A buy-sell agreement is a conversation about what happens to your family if you die unexpectedly. A 501(c)(3) maintenance file is the difference between a ministry that survives a board transition and one that doesn’t. A contract you didn’t read carefully in 2019 becomes the lawsuit you can’t dismiss in 2026.

I went to law school and added a JD to the MBA in Executive Leadership and the master’s in theology I already held, because I kept watching good attorneys give technically correct advice that missed the actual situation. I wanted to be the counselor who had been in the room. That is the practice I built.

How I work with clients.

I keep the practice small on purpose. Most weeks, I am the attorney you talk to, the attorney who drafts the document, and the attorney who picks up the phone six months later when you have a follow-up question.

Three things are true of nearly every engagement:

1. The first 30 minutes are free, confidential, and useful, whether or not we end up working together. You walk in with a question or a worry. You walk out with a clear next step, even if that next step is “you don’t need an attorney for this” or “you’d be better served by a specialist.” I take the consultation seriously because if it goes well, the rest of the work tends to follow naturally.
2. I price the work in plain English. Closely-held owners and ministry leaders are tired of opaque billing. Wherever the scope allows, I’ll quote you a flat fee or a defined-scope engagement before we start. Hourly is reserved for the situations that genuinely require it, and we agree on parameters and check-ins up front.
3. I do the part that matters with you in the room. I don’t outsource the important conversations to a paralegal or a junior associate. If we’re working on your succession plan or your church’s board governance, it’s me at the table.

Why I do this.

The clients I’m most useful to are the ones carrying more than just a legal question. They are owners thinking about what they’re building and who they’re building it for. They are pastors and boards trying to steward an institution well. They are families navigating a transition that no spreadsheet can capture.

You can hire an attorney for the document. You hire a counselor for the conversation. I’ve tried to build a practice that earns both. If that sounds like the kind of help you’re looking for, the first 30 minutes are on me.