Skip to Main Content
Compassionate Defense

About Eric W.M. Bain

Eric is passionate and knowledgeable with a wealth of criminal defense experience. He started his career at a private criminal defense firm where he learned to practice law the right way and gained invaluable courtroom experience. He cut his teeth litigating difficult cases and advocating for his clients.

Throughout his career, Eric has obtained numerous dismissals by working with prosecutors, and has also secured acquittals after taking cases to trial. In many other cases, Eric has successfully negotiated favorable resolutions for his clients. Bottom line: he fights for the rights of his clients and provides compassionate defense.

Background

Eric was drawn to criminal law after accepting an internship at the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, working in the Office of the Prosecutor, Appeals and Legal Advisory Division. After that experience, he clerked while in law school with the First Judicial District Public Defender’s Office, and also with the Public Defenders of the Bois Forte and Menominee Tribal Courts. He gained additional valuable perspective when he clerked with a municipal prosecutor in Hennepin County. During law school, he was an assistant editor for the law review, made the Dean’s list, was a Burton Award nominee (excellence in legal writing), and was named a Benjamin B. Ferencz Fellow in Human Rights and Law.

Prior to law school, Eric had a previous career as an advertising account executive in New York City and Madison, Wisconsin. Stemming from this, he carries with him a solid focus on client service and an emphasis on strategic communication.

Eric lives in Minneapolis with his wife and two boys. When he’s not lawyering, he loves playing squash, bicycling, checking out live bands, and admiring his boys’ Lego creations.

Education & Experience

University of Wisconsin
  • Bachelor of Arts, 2005
  • School of Journalism, Strategic Communication
  • Political Science
William Mitchell College of Law

Juris Doctor, 2014

Admissions

State of Minnesota

Memberships & Community Involvement
  • Amdahl Inn of Court
  • Anoka County Bar Association – President
  • Fourth District Ethics Committee – Co-Chair
  • Hennepin County Bar Association
  • Minnesota Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
  • Mitchell Hamline Mentors Program
  • Twin Cities Rise

Publications & Presentations

  • 2020 Hennepin County Bar Association CLE

    “Forfeitures - Differing Legal Perspectives on how Criminal and Civil Law Interact Throughout the Forfeiture Process”

  • 2019 Anoka County Bar Association CLE Series

    “Current and Future Developments for Forfeitures”

  • 2019 Criminal Justice Institute

    “Current and Future Developments for Forfeitures”

  • 2015 Criminal Justice Institute

    “Chapter 609 Forfeitures in Minnesota”

  • Contributing author and presenter for DWI Deskbook chapter on Forfeitures
  • New to the Bench: Hon. Hilary Lindell Caligiuri, The Hennepin Lawyer

    (Sept. 1, 2014)

  • Never Forget Nazi Genocide — And Heed Mass Atrocities Occurring Today

    MinnPost (Dec. 4, 2013), View Article

  • Another Missed Opportunity to Fix Discrimination in Discrimination Law

    38 Wm. Mitchell L. Rev. 1434 (2012), Available Here

  • How International Newspapers Framed the Pre-Iraq War Debate, in Cybermedia Go to War 55

    (Ralph D. Berenger ed., 2006) (co-presented at 2003 Assoc. for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) convention), Available Here

  • Representation in Transition: Media Portrayal of the UN in the Context of the War with Iraq (Analyzing Media Perspectives Working Paper Group, 2003)

    Accepted for presentation at International Communication Association (ICA) 2004 conference

Contact for a Free Consultation

Eric is here to help. Fill out the online form or call him at 612.206.3767 for a free consultation.