The law firm Patton, Hoversten & Berg, P.A (a professional corporation) traces its earliest history back to 1948, when William B. Patton opened the Owatonna office of a three person Waseca law firm known as Stone, Iversen and Patton. Bill had graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1948, with his law degree and his M.B.A. after service in the Navy in World War II.
In 1958, Bill Patton joined Einer Iversen in Waseca in the firm of Iversen & Patton. He was elected in 1962 to serve as Waseca City Attorney and continued until 1968 when he was elected Waseca County Attorney. Bill resigned as Waseca County Attorney in 1978, to continue full-time practice. He retired from the practice of law in 1985 and passed away in 2001.
In 1974, William L. Hoversten opened Hoversten Law Office in Waseca. Bill had just finished a one year clerkship with District Judge Urban Steimann serving the Faribault, Owatonna and Waseca area after receiving his law degree from the Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, Missouri in May 1973. He was appointed as Assistant Waseca County Attorney in the fall of 1974. It was during this time of working together with Bill Patton on county attorney cases that the idea of forming a new law firm came together. The law firm of Patton & Hoversten, P.A. was officially opened in Waseca on November 1, 1975, with offices at 215 Elm Avenue East, its present Waseca location.
In March 1982, Perry A. Berg joined the firm as an associate attorney. Perry came to the firm directly from the William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul after having served as a law clerk in the Dakota County Attorney's office. In September 1984, Perry became a shareholder in the firm. Since December of 1992, the law firm has been known as Patton, Hoversten & Berg, P.A.
Patton, Hoversten & Berg, P.A. is a general practice law firm serving clients in the Waseca County and Steele County areas. Building upon its well established foundation, the law firm has continued to grow to meet the legal needs of the area. The firm has an office on Park Square in downtown Owatonna in a building the firm restored to its turn of the century character. The firm received the 2004 Historical Preservation Award from the Steele County Historical Society in recognition of the restoration.
In addition to Bill Hoversten and Perry Berg, the firm employs five other attorneys, Cliff Gardner, Keith L. Deike, Daryl D. Bail, Blaine T. Johnson, and Erin Lindhart Felten, one paralegal, Linda Barnett, seven full-time legal assistants and seven part-time legal assistants.
The attorneys and employees of Patton, Hoversten & Berg, P.A., have made a point of being active in their communities. The firm has participated regularly in the work of the Waseca Area United Way, Chamber of Commerce, Exchange Club, Rotary, and a number of other local community and statewide charitable organizations including the Minnesota Agricultural Interpretive Center. Thanks to its dedicated employees and its many loyal clients and business associates, Patton, Hoversten & Berg, P.A. has been able to make a strong commitment to Waseca, Owatonna, Janesville, and the surrounding areas and looks forward to the future as these communities grow and prosper.
On September 1, 2004, the Gardner Law Office of Janesville, Minnesota merged with Patton, Hoversten & Berg, P.A. For 70 years, the Gardner Law Office provided quality legal services in the Janesville area, including Blue Earth County and Le Sueur County. Cliff Gardner has joined Patton, Hoversten & Berg, P.A. and continues to work in the areas of estate planning, probate, and real estate. Patton, Hoversten & Berg, P.A. is pleased to now offer a full range of legal services to the Janesville community.
