DeHorse Law Office, LLC - Madison, Wisconsin

Brienne H.

David and his team are excellent! He is very person-first, communicates clearly and explains any questions you may have, he is down-to-earth, and very focused on ensuring the best outcome for his clients. His Tenant Rights expertise and reasonable fees were exactly what I needed during a difficult housing situation. Highly recommend!

victor W.

He started out as a great lawyer but then he quickly stopped responding to any emails phone calls or text messages. He lost my case cause he said he forgot that I had a hearing and then just refused to respond and give me any info on the case. Near the end the only way i got any info was to literally show up unannounced. I would not recommend him to anyone I know because of how I was treated in the end. I now have a sour tase in my mouth for all lawyers in that area.

J. B.

I walked in his office, hopeful that David DeHorse would be able to at least answer a few questions for me about my non-renewal case. I knew there probably weren't many options, but the main thing is that I wanted him to decipher a contract regarding my rights after signing an extended lease warning, stipulating I could not take action against the realty corporation after I signed it. I thought one possibility might be writing a review on them. I asked if it was legal, considering. His response was in the form of a scolding, not a definitive answer.

He was very casual and didn't seem to care.
All he said was that I was screwed, regarding a bad deal I agreed to on the contract, instead of addressing my concerns.

in addition, I found him to be absent minded. One example was toward the end of our session when he asked, "So when are you going to be evicted?" From the start, I had told him this was a non-renewal case, not an eviction one. He read my documents that said that, as well. Plus I talked about it too.

I found David DeHorse to be arrogant, smug, probably enjoying clients being at his mercy, not a very good lawyer, a poor listener. I was taken aback when he asked me impertinently if I was retired, an inappropriate age-related question.

At the start I thought I was paying a good rate for the intake ($40), although most lawyers offer free consultations. But even that was too much to pay to get nothing useful out of this experience. I walked in hopeful, and walked out disappointed.

Be mindful that in online reviews, it's possible that some of the favorable ones are fake.

Wisconsin T. U.

You can read our article about Attorney Dehorse at the Wisconsin Tenant Union.

David Samuel DeHorse has a reputation for prioritizing his own financial interests over his clients' welfare, DeHorse's practices and strategies have raised eyebrows in the legal community and beyond.

A common tactic DeHorse employs is filing counterclaims on behalf of his tenant-clients against their landlords. Despite the frequency of these counterclaims, a majority end in failure. While DeHorse may have carved a niche for himself by adeptly defending eviction cases due to procedural oversights, this tactical win often offers only temporary relief. Landlords typically just refile their claims, effectively nullifying the benefits of DeHorse's interventions. The repercussions of these multiple filings and counter-suits become evident when landlords, conducting routine checks on platforms like CCAP, come across these records. The chances of a tenant securing a future residence diminish significantly with such a tarnished record.

One glaring concern is DeHorse's habit of falsifying claims regarding security deposits on complaints. It's widely speculated that this is a strategy to entice landlords into litigation. Once embroiled in the process, DeHorse frequently takes an aggressive stance, possibly with the intent of racking up his attorney fees. There have been at least one instance where DeHorse has, rather audaciously, requested actual attorney fees from the court when only reasonable fees are stipulated by the law.

A particularly striking case involves a landlord who, attempting to settle, issued a check in the name of DeHorse's clients for the entire amount requested in the complaint. Rather than informing his clients immediately, DeHorse chose to deposit the check into his trust account and continued driving up his attorney fees via litigation. The clients remained in the dark about this development until the beginning of trial, approximately two years later. The result? A devastating judgment of $7,626.00 against the tenants, with the court dismissing all of DeHorse's claims against the landlord. Conversations with the landlord post-trial revealed that a reasonable approach by DeHorse, one that genuinely prioritized his clients' best interests, would have led to a far more favorable outcome by the landlord dismissing the counterclaims.

In another illustrative case from 2021, DeHorse represented a tenant who was renting a spacious 5-bedroom house in Edgerton for a mere $850.00. Amidst disputes over rent and unpaid water bills, the landlord magnanimously offered to waive off the tenant's dues and even proposed a different housing solution free of charge, contingent on the tenant vacating the property. Instead of seizing this golden opportunity, DeHorse and his client resisted the eviction. While they triumphed in the initial eviction filing due to a procedural flaw, the subsequent refiling by the landlord culminated in a staggering judgment of $7,141.92 against the tenant. The fallout from this case paints a grim picture: from the prospect of waived-off debts and complimentary accommodation, the tenant plummeted to facing a burdensome financial judgment and two eviction filings, one of which was granted.

The Wisconsin Tenant Union expresses deep reservations about DeHorse's modus operandi. A fundamental issue is his apparent disregard for the long-term implications for his clients, especially post-eviction. His excessive and often unnecessary litigation not only inflates attorney fees but also indirectly exacerbates the financial burden on tenants, who bear the brunt of these escalated costs in the form of rent increases.

In conclusion, while Attorney David Samuel DeHorse might have carved a niche for himself in the legal landscape, the long-term ramifications of his actions on his clients, and the tenant community at large, are hard to ignore. It's essential to tread with caution when considering Attorney DeHorse.

Susan K.

I could not be happier with the work DeHorse Law office did for my very complicated case. A woman was suing me for her heifers not being pregnant. But with intense investigating work of this firm they found many issues with the plaintiff. Not only did she lose the lawsuit, that took over 2 years, DeHorse law office continued to research and find new problems with her case. I will use this Law office for other needs as well. Staff is wonderful and helpful.

JACK M.

A few months back me and my brother was reffered to DeHorse by some friends to represent us both in a tenant & landlord issue... and on first meeting DeHorse this man failed to give his name or a handshake. (first redflag...) then I took notice of the fact that DeHorse was using a dinner table for an office desk... not very professional but I could look passed that.

Then DeHorse proceeded to question me concerning my case and I couldn't help but feel that I was being interrogated in a court of law instead of being questioned about the situation at hand?

During the questioning of me and my brother's case DeHorse was very, very rude, arrogant, and pompous. after 10 mins of DeHorse's rude behavior and lack of attention/empathy towards my case out of nowhere DeHorse interupted the conversation and asked us both for a $40 consultation fee to inform me and my brother of our legal options.

Right there I became disinchanted with DeHorse and told him I do not have the $40 consultating fee with me at the moment nor do I intend to pay him any fee whatsoever because I felt the man was very rude & unprofessional WARNING!!! steer clear from this lawyer he is not professional or competent enough to represent anyone!

Sandra S.

David DeHorse Lawyer in Madison WI represented me in a rental move out dispute. The owner of the complex was taking me to court for much money. This fantastic Attorney took my case we went to court not once but twice and won in both courts. David DeHorse knew his laws and carried out the facts against this rental company to succeed and end my case giving me great peace of mind. I can't thank David enough.
Sincerely satisfied Client

Cody C.

Cody C.

David did some amazing work for me and helped me get my money back from my landlord that illegally evicted me and tried stealing all the money I put into the house for him as I do remodels if Homes.

Remodeled the entire house for him where he could charge another $200-$300 a month in rent and not even a month or two after completed evicts me mid month.

David really did an amazing job and won my money back and some for the major inconveniences my landlord put me though.

I own Barn Board Revamped and get very Leary on people and who to trust, but you will not regret having David on your side!

I would highly recommend David!