Michelle Behnke ’88, who assumed the role of American Bar Association (ABA) president-elect in August, lives by a maxim that has served her and others well.
“I believe my unique legal training should benefit the greater community,” said Behnke, who will serve a one-year term before becoming ABA president in August 2025. “I feel very fortunate to have a legal education, and I have always believed that to whom much is given, much is expected.”
Behnke is a Madison native who graduated from University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1983. When she started classes at University of Wisconsin Law School two years later, the experience was very different from her undergraduate education in that “there were no absolute right and wrong answers to the questions posed.”
Behnke became involved in the Student Bar Association (SBA), working to represent students and address the issues they faced. It was her involvement in the SBA that also led to a connection with fellow classmate Darrell Behnke, whom she married while in law school.
Behnke began her legal career with Stolper, Koritzinsky, Brewster & Neider, S.C., then practiced as in-house counsel for CUNA Mutual Insurance Society before opening her own firm, Michelle Behnke & Associates, in 1998. In August of this year, she joined Boardman Clark, one of Madison’s largest and longest-standing law firms. Behnke has also served on various nonprofit and corporate boards. She is currently serving on the Board of Directors for the Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association and the Law School Board of Visitors, among others.
In 2004, she became the State Bar of Wisconsin’s first African American president, which she believes “helped others feel that their participation and involvement in the State Bar was welcomed and needed.” There has not been another person of color elected to the role since Behnke’s service.
“I feel very fortunate to have a legal education, and I have always believed that to whom much is given, much is expected.” – Michelle Behnke ’88
“Being the first carries the burden of also ensuring that you are not the last,” she said. “I work to encourage others to seek the position, and I’ve supported other diverse candidates and worked for their election, but we’ve not crossed that barrier yet.”
Behnke also has a long history of service with the ABA.
She previously served as ABA treasurer from 2017-20 and was recently chair of the ABA Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Profession. She was a member of the ABA’s Strategic Planning Committee and Wisconsin state chair for the Membership Committee. She has been a member of the ABA Board of Governors and House of Delegates and formerly served as chair of the Standing Committee on Bar Activities and Services.
Recently, Behnke served as co-chair of the Wisconsin Host Committee for the ABA Task Force on Democracy, an issue highlighted under the service of past ABA President, Mary Smith.
“Civic understanding about how our governmental system is designed to work is not commonplace,” explained Behnke. “For our democracy to work, we need participation and engagement by the public. I wanted to ensure we worked to put on a program in Wisconsin to help lawyers and the public think about the importance of democracy and the threats we are currently seeing to our democracy.”
In July, in partnership with the State Bar of Wisconsin, the ABA hosted a program to promote understanding of the American election process and share where to get reliable election information. The listening session was the fourth held by the ABA task force. The first three took place in Georgia, Michigan and Pennsylvania, all crucial election states.
“The ABA chose these battleground states because voters there are likely to be bombarded with disinformation before the November election,” explained Behnke. “ABA past President Smith has been sharing staggering statistics saying the threat to democracy is the most important issue facing the U.S. She routinely cites the following statistics:
- one-in-six American adults can’t name even one of the three branches of the U.S. government;
- less than one-third of Millennials consider it essential that they live in a democracy;
- about 38% of Americans support authoritarianism as a response to the direction of democracy; and
- nearly one-quarter of Americans say they’re ready to use violence if their candidate loses.”
Next August, Behnke will become president of the ABA, a role she is “very excited” to assume.
“Having the chance to strengthen the national organization that is committed to supporting lawyers, helping them be great lawyers and contributing to important work in the profession is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” she said. “The legal profession is changing daily, and helping to support lawyers as they serve their clients and their communities is really important to me.”
To be elected to represent lawyers from across the country and to work to address emerging issues in the profession is a great honor and responsibility, she added.
“The job sometimes seems overwhelming, but I do feel like the legal education and training I received at University of Wisconsin Law School and the Law-in-Action philosophy have prepared me well to problem solve and implement solutions to issues that may sometimes seem insurmountable,” she said.