Michael Stewart Waddington
Michael Waddington is a criminal defense lawyer that defends cases in military courts worldwide.

Mr. Waddington served two tours as an Army defense lawyer, worked as a Special Assistant United States Attorney, and as an Army Chief of Military Justice.
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Mr. Waddington has provided consultation services to CNN Investigative Reports, 60 Minutes, Katie Couric, ABC Nightline, the BBC, German Public Television and others. He has appeared in a major CNN Documentary, the 2009 "Killings at the Canal" and some of his cases have been the subject of books and movies, including the Academy Award Winning Documentary "Taxi to the Dark Side," Stjepan Mestrovic's book, "The 'Good Soldier' on Trial," and Brian De Palma's "Redacted," (De Palma also directed "Scarface" and "Carlito's Way").

In June 2007, Mr. Waddington was selected to write an article on Court Martials and military law for the New Jersey State Bar Magazine, in the magazine's first-ever edition focusing on Military Law and issues relevant to military personnel and veterans. This journal is the leading legal news magazine for New Jersey lawyers, judges, and lawmakers.

Mr. Waddington provides also criminal defense & trial consultation services in serious cases worldwide. In the summer of 2008, he acted as the chief trial consultant and legal strategist for 3 Israeli clients charged in Tokyo, Japan in the largest drug importation case in Japanese history.

Duane Kees - Special Counsel to the firm on military law matters

Mr. Kees is currently an associate with the Asa Hutchinson Law Group, PLC, in Rogers, Arkansas where he devotes much of his practice to the defense of military personnel.  Prior to his position at the Asa Hutchinson Law Group, PLC, Mr. Kees served over eight years in the United States Army Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corp.  During his time on active duty, Mr. Kees served both as a prosecutor and a defense attorney.
 
As a commissioned officer, Mr. Kees had the privilege of deploying to both Iraq and Afghanistan in support of the War on Terror.  During both deployments, he was tasked not only with the mission of advising commanders in wartime scenarios but with addressing various diplomatic issues and negotiating on behalf of the US Army as well.  To accomplish these types of assignments, Captain Kees worked closely with members of the U.S. Departments of State, Justice and Defense.  He also assumed responsibility for the drafting of agreements between the U.S. Army and our allies.  During each deployment he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for his performance.

As a defense attorney, Mr. Kees has successfully traveled throughout the world to represent the men and women of the United States military in countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Germany, and South Korea.  He also has extensive experience within the continental United States and Hawaii.  Although success is never guaranteed, many of his cases resulted in either acquittals or outcomes far better than his clients anticipated.  One of his most successful victories involved a six-year-old aggravated sexual assault case which had been overturned by the appellate court.  Mr. Kees was the lead counsel at the new trial and after four days of intense litigation, the soldier received a full acquittal as well as a large settlement from the government.  Mr. Kees has worked on four murder trials, several rapes cases and numerous drug offense cases.  Mr. Kees’s cases have been aired on a variety of media outlets including CNN, Fox News and The Army Times.  
Defense Attorney

• Former Senior Defense Counsel, Fort Sill, Lawton, Oklahoma

• Successfully defended military personnel at all ranks from various charges including murder, rape, drug offenses, assault, child pornography, DFAS fraud, AWOL and various other crimes.

• Successfully argued for and received over 1000 administrative discharges for military personnel facing courts martial for both AWOL and desertion.

• Achieved the dismissals of several charges after a successful Article 32 investigation.

• Deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan and gained the operational experience needed to successfully defend both detainee abuse cases and ROE/EOF violations.

• Received the Meritorious Service Medal for service as a Senior Defense Counsel.

Bar Licenses and Admissions

• Arkansas Supreme Court
• U.S. District Court for the Western and Eastern Districts of Arkansas
• All United States Military Circuit Courts
• Areas of Practice

Duane Kees is a trial lawyer with an area of focus in court martial defense, administrative separation, and nonjudicial punishment.

Education

• Complex Litigation Course, Naval Justice School, 2008
• Advanced Trial Advocacy Course, 2008
• Criminal Law Advocacy Course, 2005
• J.D., University of Arkansas School of Law, 2000
• B.A., University of Arkansas, 1997

Classes/Seminars

• Presenter, Impeachment of Expert Witnesses - Military Defense Conf., San Diego, CA, 2008
• Instructor, UCMJ for Commanders – Schofield Barracks, HI, 2004-2006
• Instructor, Rules of Engagement – Iraq, 2006-2007

Professional Accomplishments

• Former Senior Defense Attorney, Fort Sill, Oklahoma
• Former Trial Counsel, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii
• Former Brigade Judge Advocate, Kirkuk, Iraq
• Former Command Judge Advocate, Kandahar, Afghanistan